When David Defeats Goliath!
It is no secret to anyone that a great cinematographer and owner of the now most famous fairy tales has amassed a great fortune as a result of long years of effort and hard work.
From television series, theme parks, animated films and many tons of merchandise that exist around the world, the Disney brand has known how to create an empire throughout the world today;
that is why they are very jealous of their image and always take care of their interests with great support from legal specialists who in the vast majority of cases know how to defend said interests
But this was not the case that happened in 1993, when a Paraguayan company was the winner in a series of lawsuits that the entertainment giant filed against it, which at the moment is in charge of the manufacture and distribution of food.
This company, which is the product of the impulse of an Italian immigrant couple, was born in 1935 thanks to the vision of Mr. Pascual Blasco, who started his business as a greengrocer in one of the busiest streets of the city where he lived. ; Like any process, he knew that this would require time and dedication; but this did not frighten him at all, since he had come to that new country with the intention of changing his lives.
Time passed and after he fell ill, his then wife took over the business, however, thanks to one of his sons who was venturing into the field of product packaging, what we know today as Mickey SRL was born. in 1969.
This company that began as a manufacturer and marketer of foods such as: ground biscuits, powdered sugar, anise, among others, took as an image the well-known character devised by Walt Disney in 1928 and which is known worldwide as the most famous mouse in the world. world.
Apparently the company owned this image, however the logo of the same had never been registered with the character in profile and this was what the lawyers of Mickey SRL alleged when going to trial in the supreme court.
Normally we are used to the Disney emblem being the silhouette of Mickey Mouse, but in the front mode; and being in profile then the space is open for another company, in this case Mickey SRL from Paraguay, to take advantage of this image.
In effect, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Paraguayan company, since Disney had never realized this small detail, much less took the precaution of patenting said image.
However, not everything is rosy for this company, since they can only work in the gastronomic field within the region of Paraguay, and they cannot venture into other fields since the lawsuit prohibits it. Even these foods cannot be marketed outside the country. For this reason, their range of action is limited to only the Latin American nation.
With more than 50 years in the market, these people have known how to open a field within what is the gastronomic sector of Paraguay, being one of the leading companies. And it is that we assume that with the great publicity that this image means you can ensure that the commercialization is almost certain through a simple marketing strategy.
This is not the first time that it has happened, since a large number of cases have been presented previously, but with internet sites that are owned by famous companies, but that when the time of their domain expires, people who are attentive to this type of events they proceed to buy said domains, and for this reason they are sued and in some cases they lose the lawsuits or they become creditors of a large amount of money that the company is forced to pay to acquire the domain.
However, this company from Paraguay knew how to take advantage of the opportunity and with great luck it has had a winning brand, which, in its beginnings, had only 8 workers and today it has more than 100; venturing and expanding its range of action to various regions of the country and incorporating more and more products in its production line.
For its part, Disney has had to settle for having its presence only as a film company in the region of Paraguay, which does not represent major losses, since it is not distributing any type of gastronomic products within that country.
It should be noted that the image of Mickey Mouse has been very controversial over the years, since Disney himself has been accused of plagiarizing this character by his friend Ub Iwerks; with which there is still a certain degree of uncertainty as a result of the evidence that he has shown in different courts and that have carried out the trial on this matter.
To this is added that many times the giant of the industry has also carried out versions different from the original ones of the fairy tales and in which the story is adapted to a certain pattern that for many connoisseurs of them is somewhat uncomfortable .
But among so many controversies we have to highlight that this has been a company that has managed to expand throughout the world, bringing entertainment and merchandise to many places, knowing how to make the most of its brand; Perhaps it is for this reason that they carried out such an aggressive trial against the Paraguayan gastronomy brand that makes use of its beloved character.
However, this is not an endorsement to cover certain blanks that are left in the law and thanks to which the judgment was in favor of the company Mickey SRL.
