The Cowboys filed a lawsuit yesterday against MA-based
Converse Inc., to "prevent the athletic shoe maker from
interfering with upcoming sales of officially licensed
casual shoes, winter boots and shower slippers" bearing the
team's name and logo, according to Richard Alm of the DALLAS
MORNING NEWS. Five-pointed stars "are prominent" in the
logos of both the Cowboys and Converse, and Alm reports that
the team's suit, which does not contain a request for
financial damages, claims that the "two stars can coexist --
as they have for years -- without confusion in the
marketplace." NFLP joined the team in the suit, which
Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones declined to comment on, saying
only that the team was "standing side by side with the
league on this matter." The new Cowboys-themed footwear
will be manufactured by FL-based Foot-Tec Industries Inc.,
and is slated to begin shipping "[i]n the next few weeks."
The team and league "struck first" in litigation because
they "believed that Converse intended to file suit to stop
distribution of the new shoes." Converse execs could not be
reached for comment (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 7/7). BLOOMBERG's
Loren Steffy reports the Cowboys' action is the "latest
twist in a four-year battle" between the team and Converse
over the use of the star logo. The Cowboys' suit claims
that in '94, the shoe company filed an objection with the
U.S. Patent Office over the team's plans to place its star
logo on shoes and clothing, saying the logo "would cause
confusion" with its own logo (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 7/17).
