Sony is trying - and failing - to trademark "Let's Play"

Sony is trying - and, it seems, failing - to trademark the term "Let's Play".

Earlier this month Sony Computer Entertainment America tried to trademark "Let's Play" with the United States Patent and Trademark Office, but the attempt was rejected because, the USPTO said, there would have been consumer confusion with something called "LP LET'Z PLAY".

"LP LET'Z PLAY" is a trademark held by a US company that works to connect gamers together.

Now, though, the USPTO has wised up to the common sense reason why you can't - shouldn't - trademark Let's Play: because it's a generic term used to describe thousands of videos of people playing games.

This latest development is the result of The McArthur Law Firm, which sent a letter of protest to the USPTO speaking out against Sony's trademark attempt.

The letter cited over 50 examples of how Let's Play is generic and descriptive of video game streaming. It worked, and now the USPTO has had its say, citing the Wikipedia page for Let's Play and the the /r/letsplay subreddit as evidence.

Here's a portion of the ruling:

The McArthur Law Firm said this latest rejection is "far more lethal" to Sony than the USPTO's previous rejection.

"Given the strength of this evidence, we are confident that Sony will not be able to overcome this rejection," the firm said. "The term 'Let's Play' is now forever in the public domain."

For the players, eh Sony?

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