by Mark Malek

The lawsuit between Ozzy Osbourne and Tony Iommi over the Black Sabbath trademark has been “amicably resolved” (source).  Ozzy filed a lawsuit in May of 2009 after finding out that Iommi filed a trademark application for “Black Sabbath” with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.  The lawsuit claimed that Iommi illegally took sole ownership of the trademark when he filed the application with the USPTO.  The relief sought in the complaint for a 50 percent interest in the trademark, along with a portion of the profits that Iommi may have realized from use of the trademark.  Ozzy claimed that it was his vocals that gave the band it’s extraordinary success.  I’d bet that’s the same case for “The Osbournes,”  the MTV reality show.

Black Sabbath is an English band formed by Ozzy, Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward in 1968.  The band went through many iterations, but the one constant throughout the years was Iommi.  Ozzy left the band in 1979.  The original lineup reunited in 1997 and released one album. 

Don't we all own the trademark???

This case was kind of interesting to me because it seemed to be a trademark dispute between two guys (Iommi and Ozzy) over a trademark that many people could probably claim an ownership interest in.  From what I can see, there were more than 20 members of Black Sabbath over the years.  It seems to me that many of those members, or their estates, could be entitled to some of the profits that are derived from the “Black Sabbath” trademark.  Without question, Iommi and Ozzy are the most popular members of that band, and probably did lead to most of its success, but this case had every potential to get ugly quick.  I am sure that this came up in the settlement discussions, i.e., some attorneys probably sat around a table and advised the two that if the case got dragged out, they should not be surprised if several other members of the Band came out of the woodwork to claim their piece of the pie.

Iommi is welcome to join our family anytime!

Appraently, the possiblity of yet another reunion has not been ruled out.  It is a crying shame that “The Osbournes” reality show is not still around.  Theycould have had entire episodes based solely on this lawsuit.  The ratings would have been through the roof.  Wishful thinking!