Ryan Satin of ProWrestlingSheet.com is reporting that WWE is pulling the new John Cena merchandise that has been inspired by the Pabst Blue Ribbon logo. The Cena merchandise was rolled out yesterday on social media & was going to be his new entrance gear moving forward for his big return this coming Monday on the Memorial Day edition of WWE Raw.
Last night, Pabst Blue Ribbon responded to the t-shirt being rolled out with a tweet back to WWE w/ a borderline threat of legal action against the company for using the new logo:
A message to @JohnCena & the @WWE: We have a chokehold called the Cease & Desist. Pretty sure we see you🖕 pic.twitter.com/AKWjUEXiUj
— Pabst Blue Ribbon (@PabstBlueRibbon) May 27, 2016
WWE doesn’t believe they are in the wrong with using the logo & have parodied other logos in the past. However, the t-shirts will not be sold & a new design will probably be printed for Cena as soon as possible. A WWE rep issued a statement to Pro Wrestling Sheet:
“As a content creator, WWE respects trademarks and intellectual property, and therefore will not proceed selling the merchandise, despite it being an original design clearly within fair use.”
Knowing John Cena, I wouldn’t be shocked if he gives some kind of response to PBR during his first promo back on this Monday’s Raw.
