THE Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) has cancelled the registration of Television and Production Exponents, Inc., or TAPE, Inc., for the trademarks “Eat Bulaga” and “EB.”
In a statement released on Wednesday, Dec. 6, iIPOPHL said the petitions for cancellation were granted by on Dec. 4, and that the decisions were received by the parties on Dec. 5.
Below is the full statement of IPOPHL on the cancellation of TAPE’s Eat Bulaga trademark registration:
“On recent queries regarding the cancellation of the Television and Production Exponents Inc. (TAPE) registration of the “EAT BULAGA” and “EB” trademarks No. 4-2011-005951 and No. 4-2011-005950, respectively, IPOPHL confirms that the petitions for cancellation were granted last December 4, 2023, and the decisions were received by the parties on December 5, 2023.
“As provided for under the Bureau of Legal Affairs (BLA) procedures, the cases initially underwent compulsory mediation. As the parties failed to settle, the petitions were referred to adjudication at which stage hearings were held to inspect and compare the parties’ respective evidence, followed by submission of position papers. After which, the Adjudication Officer rendered the decisions.
“The decisions of the Adjudication Officer may be appealed to the BLA Director within 15 days from receipt of the decisions. In turn, the appellate decisions of the BLA Director may be appealed to the IPOPHL Director General within 30 days from receipt of the copy of the BLA Director’s decisions.
“The EAT BULAGA and EB registrations that are covered by TM Reg. No. 4-2011-005951 and No. 4-2011-005950 are for Nice Classes 16, 18, 21 and 25.”
The decision of IPOPHL favors the claim of veteran hosts Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon that they are the rightful owners of “Eat Bulaga.”
It was last June 2 when IPOPHL said that its Bureau of Legal Affairs (BLA) received a petition from the three hosts to cancel “Eat Bulaga” and “EB” trademarks of TAPE Inc., which produces the noontime show.
The three hosts announced their departure from “Eat Bulaga” last May 31 amid a dispute with the owners of TAPE Inc. They have since transferred to TV5 as hosts of another noontime show “E.A.T. (ABS-CBN News)
