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Bluey, the Children's TV favorite, has been caught up in a legal battle involving the BBC and an online merchandise seller.
BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. has launched legal action against a number of companies whom the company accuses of infringing copyright and selling "counterfeit versions" of Bluey products online.
Bluey is an Australian preschool cartoon series that has become a global phenomenon since it launched in 2018. It follows the adventures of the puppy Bluey Heeler and her canine friends and family. The show has won countless industry awards and has become a favorite for millions of families around the world.
The BBC claims in its lawsuit to hold the patent and merchandising rights to sell Bluey products in the United States. The defendants in the case are referred to as "The partnerships and unincorporated associations identified on schedule "A"" according to court documents seen by Newsweek.
The BBC gained distribution rights to Bluey from Australian-based Ludo Studio Pty Ltd.
The case was filed in Chicago, Illinois, on June 20, 2023. In a list of demands, BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. has called on the court to prevent the defendants from using the Bluey trademark, or any "reproductions, counterfeit copies or colorable imitations," on any more of their products.
The production studio has called for all of the imitation Bluey products to be removed from online marketplaces such as eBay, AliExpress, Alibaba, Amazon, Walmart, Wish.com, Etsy, and DHgate.
The company has demanded that the defendants account for and pay them all profits realized for infringement on the Bluey trademark.
BBC Studios included in its lawsuit three documents from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, showing that the company and Ludo Studios Pty Ltd. held the rights over two Bluey logos and the character design of the main character, Bluey Heely.
Bluey has become increasingly popular over its three seasons and 151 episodes of television aired so far. Viewers watched a collective 737 million minutes of programming in April alone, according to a Nielsen report. In the United States, Bluey is available to watch on Disney channels and Disney+.
While Bluey is a family favorite, it has courted controversy in the past, as two episodes were pulled in August 2020. In the episodes "Teasing" and "Flat Pack" the phrase "ooga booga" was used by characters, which some viewers found offensive over its "racial connotations."
Australian channel ABC addressed the issue at the time after a viewer complained the term had "racial connotations and a problematic history for Indigenous Australians." The channel apologized and both the episodes were edited to remove the offensive term.
Correction 06/26/2023, 7:33 a.m. ET: This article was updated to correct the gender of the character Bluey.
About the writer
Jamie Burton is a Newsweek Senior TV and Film Reporter (Interviews) based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on ... Read more