Beyoncé and Jay-Z have been denied the right to trademark Blue Ivy.
The superstar couple filed a petition in January, days after their baby was born, to trademark her name. Apparently, the couple was trying to trademark the name so they could use it for a line of baby products. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office denied the application meaning the name is open to be used by the couple as well as a wedding planner that has been trying to trademark the name way before the baby existed.
Veronica Alexandra, a Boston-based wedding planner filed an application to trademark Blue Ivy back in 2009, two years before Bey and Jay’s daughter was born. “I knew this was going to be a bittersweet roller coaster,” Alexandra said to Rolling Stone. “If this wasn’t going to work, I’d go after both of them. Like, ‘Let’s do it!’ In my mind I had some protective rights. There’s no way by way of being a celebrity they should have entitlement [to the name]. Shame on them.” Alexandra wanted to trademark the name so she could use it for wedding and event planning and marketing related to her business.
Alexandra was shocked when she learned the Carters gave their daughter the same name as her company. “I was really blatantly shocked,” she continued. “I didn’t think it was true because nobody names their daughter Blue Ivy.” According to Rolling Stone, she named her company Blue Ivy because the name conveyed romantic traditionalism. Ultimately, Alexandra is a good sport about the situation. “For me it was a very large compliment,” she says. “All in all I was extremely happy that my design capacity is pretty bad ass. Money doesn’t buy everything.”
There has been no word from Beyoncé and Jay-Z on the matter and it isn’t clear whether or not they plan to appeal.
