Netflix In Trouble Because of Bandersnatch
It was bound to happen.
The moment we heard of Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and its interactive nature, we were thrown back to our childhood days…nights reading under a blanket with a flashlight so we wouldn’t get caught…grasping a well-worn paperback which let us choose the way the story went…
Every child of the 80s would know what we’re on about.
Choose Your Own Adventure was the thing back then. You open the book and flip through the pages, the plot progressing depending on your choices.
And this is exactly how Netflix’s new offering works. Replace choosing a page with clicking on an option at the bottom of your screen, and you’ve got something very similar.
The fact that this is one of the selling points of Black Mirror: Bandersnatch is the basis of the lawsuit against Netflix. The complaint was lodged by the publishers of the 80s franchise (Chooseco LLC), stating that they own “registered trademarks that include the word mark CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE” and that “Netflix has no license or authorization to use any Chooseco trademark.”
The document refers to the first few minutes of the movie, noting that “the protagonist refers to a fictional book in the diegesis as a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book. Chooseco takes offense at this unlicensed use. Furthermore, they do not want to be associated with the “dark” and “disturbing” content as it “dilutes the goodwill for and positive associations with Chooseco’s mark and tarnishes its products.”
All that being said, the publisher is seeking damages and an injunction.
Have you seen Bandersnatch? Do you think it infringes Choose Your Own Adventure’s trademark and harms its reputation?
