httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_qoGYnBJsY
The first is that Fine Bros Entertainment has applied for a trademark on a number of things relative to their series on YouTube.
Plug in “Fine Brothers” into the search and you’ll see they have applied for a trademark on a number of things, including “Teens React”, “Kids React”, “Elders React” and even the word “React”.
The purpose of a trademark is to distinguish one company from another, so trademarking their assets will allow FBE to have better legal standing against copycats that are deceptively titling their videos and shows similar to the “React” series in order to gain exposure.
“React World allows you to license some of FBE’s most popular series, and use the trademarks. With that comes a suite of support that you can read about at the website.”
“We do not hold a copyright on reaction videos overall. No one can. React World is about licensing FBE’s show formats, not just for shows like Kids React, but also others like”Do They Know It?,” “Lyric Breakdown,” and more.
“Detractors have pointed to series from VH1 and MTV like”I Love the 80s/90s” and “Beavis and Butthead who did similar reactions in their shows, claiming that FBE is copying off of an established format themselves and has no right to a trademark.
What about other companies like Buzzfeed, who have been similarly finding success with reaction style videos like the one below? How will they be impacted by a legal trademark by FBE? At a time when reaction videos are as popular as ever, some detractors claim that FBE is reaching out and trying to grab the whole market via force, which understandably scares a lot of creators.
If, as a result of their trademarks, random react videos are struggling to get through YouTube’s Content ID, it will only reinforce the idea that they are trying to control the market with legal action, even if they aren’t actively making the strikes themselves.
Execution will be critical for FBE in this venture, as it could harm their core brand even more than just “React World” if they don’t pull it off correctly.