F1 Files Lawsuit Against Singapore Drinks Company

Often we've seen cases of manufacturers or entrepreneurs trying to take advantage of a certain brand in order to better promote themselves and their businesses. So one can't be too shocked when hearing that a drinks company from Singapore has been commercializing a certain beverage called “F1 Racing Energy Drink” for some time now.

Obviously, when hearing about it, Formula One moved quickly to suing the company. According to the GMM news agency, citing Bloomberg and the Straits Times, a first hearing was already held on Wednesday in the Singapore High Court, with Formula One Licensing BV “asking for damages and an order for the drinks to be destroyed.”

The drinks maker in question is called Speed Drinks Pte and has an F1 logo of its own already registered in the Netherlands and other parts of the world. That's probably why they're claiming that Bernie Ecclestone's sport is wrongly claiming for the rights of the “F1” term. Additionally, company director Ashok Murthy insists the logo is totally different than the one used by the racing series.

However, an interesting fact regarding Speed Drinks Pte is that their official website redirects its users to... yes, you've guessed it, the Formula One official web page.

According to court papers, quoted by the Straits Times, Formula One argued that “Speed Drinks' actions would hinder its future attempts to license the use of the 'F1' mark on beverages,” while having already produced “irreparable damage to the reputation and goodwill” of the brand.

Speed Drinks has been selling the aforementioned beverage for almost a year now, since last season's Singapore Grand Prix in September.

Formula One is not at its first fight against companies who are trying to use its name for commercial purposes. Back in 2006, F1 has won a lawsuit against eight Chinese fashion companies that were selling “F1 jeans”. A year later however, the sport did not manage to win exclusive rights over the “F1” name in the UK.