The long-simmering Salt Lake Comic Con vs. San Diego Comic-Con lawsuit goes to trial by jury today (Tuesday) in federal court in San Diego. (Apparently, Judge Dredd is AWOL).
Expect 130,000 geeks (the turnout at SL Comic Con) to be following it closely.
Salt Lake Comic Con, which argues, basically, “that the phrases ‘comic con,’ ‘comicon’ and even ‘comic-con’ are generic and are abbreviations for the term ‘comic convention.’ “
San Diego Comic-Con (note the hypen), which historically preceded the SLC event, argues that Comic Con in any form, is their trademark.
In short, it’s complicated. But because these fan gatherings generate crazy amounts of money, it has gotten ugly.
In any case, the losing side is expected to appeal the verdict to a higher court, presumably the Justice League.
The next Salt Lake Comic Con, which is annually covered by SLMag, is set for Sept. 6-8.
