Doom scrolling is the thing that makes you spend way too much time flipping through Twitter or Instagram and reading bad news. And apparently a metal guitarist in Dallas, Texas thought it was the perfect name for a new band. But after trying to protect the band name Downfall devs Id Software began legal opposition to the name that could last through 2023.
As reported by Wired, Guitarist and Amazon employee Dustin Mitchell may face a lawsuit with ID software about the word “Doomscroll” and his desire to use it as the name of a new “progressive thrash metal band”. He was inspired to use Doomscroll as his band name after reading an article about a QAnon-obsessed woman who destroyed a shelf of face masks at her local Target. She would later explain what led to the outbreak, saying, “All I did was doomscroll.” Mitchell liked the sound of the word and decided it would make a great band name.
Mitchell, who claims not to be very online and does not doom-scrolling himself, decided in February to trademark the band name with the US Patent and Trademark Office. A few months later it was approved and after 30 days he was told that his trademark would be legally established.
Then, on October 13th, the very last day of the 30-day period, he received an email from an attorney representing Id Software. The attorney asked Mitchell to extend the 30-day USPTO trademark deadline to avoid legal action. Mitchell felt weird after receiving the email telling Wired that he was a huge fan of the old Downfall Games as a kid and now he faced the developers because of his band name. “You’re trying to take something from me that has nothing to do with you,” said Mitchell.
A trademark attorney said Wired that may seem strange, Mitchell most likely had every right to brand the word Doomscroll because in the context of music it is “not a generic term or descriptive of music, musical performances or musical services”. But Id’s lawyers will most likely “step in” to keep the brand name and franchise out of confusion. According to the Wired report, Id similarly intervened to deter other people from protecting or registering brand names that use the word Doom, including a rock metal event called “Maryland Doom Fest” and a podcast called it “Garden of Doom”.
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The future of Doomscroll (The Band) rests with Id Software’s lawyers for now. In October, Mitchell was given a long trial schedule that runs through 2023. So this will most likely not be fixed that quickly unless the guitarist gives up the fight.
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