Dr. Dre has lost his trademark infringement case against a US gynaecologist
How many times have you gotten your local doctor confused with a world-famous millionaire hip-hop legend and businessman? While it might be a daily occurrence for some of us, the thought of this occurring had obviously become a very real worry for hip-hop icon Dr. Dre, who has recently lost a trademark infringement case against a US gynaecologist.
Back in 2015, the former N.W.A member launched a trademark infringement case against Pennsylvania-based gynaecologist Dr. Draion M Burch, who was attempting to trademark the name ‘Dr. Drai’. The rap legend objected to this application, claiming it could cause mass “confusion” for fans, consumers, and medical patients alike, especially considering the doctor planned to use this name on books and at medical conferences.
However, as the BBC reports, the US trademark office has dismissed Dr. Dre’s case (real name Andre Young), claiming that he had failed to show that consumers could be easily misled into purchasing Dr. Burch’s products.
The trademark office also noted that due to the high cost of Dr. Burch’s speaking engagements ($5,000 USD) , consumers were more likely to exercise a “higher degree of care” and other due diligence before choosing to purchase tickets or books by the US doctor.
To his credit, it appears that Burch’s attempts were not some opportunistic attempt at cashing in on the music mogul’s reputation, noting that it would be “a bad reflection on me as a doctor”, before citing some of the misogynistic and homophobic lyrics penned by Dr. Dre.
Dr. Burch also explained that people would be unlikely to confuse the two, considering that “Dr. Dre is not a medical doctor nor is he qualified to provide any type of medical services or sell products specifically in the medical or healthcare industry.”
Check out Dr. Dre’s ‘Still D.R.E’:
This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.