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The
End Brooklyn and its owner, Montauk Juice Factory, said it
created the Unicorn Latte, its own bright pink and blue drink,
and began selling it in December, four months before Starbucks
launched the Unicorn Frappuccino, according to a lawsuit filed
on Wednesday in U.S. District Court in New York.
Montauk Juice Factory filed a trademark application for the
Unicorn Latte on Jan. 20 after the popularity of its drink
soared, accounting for about a quarter of the store's sales
since its launch, it said in the suit.
In addition to similar names, the similar appearance of the
drinks creates confusion within the market, the coffee shop
noted in the suit.
By creating and marketing such a similar product, Starbucks
should be "held accountable for infringing, diluting and
otherwise diminishing" the plaintiffs' intellectual property
value, the lawsuit said.
The coffee shop and its owner is asking the court to order
Seattle-based Starbucks to pay them all profits made from the
Unicorn drink and for any losses that they incurred, the lawsuit
said.
Starbucks said it believed the lawsuit's claims were without
merit.
"The Starbucks Unicorn Frappuccino blended beverage was inspired
by the fun, spirited and colorful unicorn-themed food and drinks
that have been trending in social media," the company said in an
email, adding that it was offered for a limited period in April
and was no longer available.
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Saumyadeb
Chakrabarty)
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