SAN ANTONIO — Victor Wembanyama has settled his lawsuit against the owner of the Wemby's World website, which Wembanyama claimed was selling unauthorized merchandise featuring the Spurs star's name, image and likeness.
Court documents filed in the U.S. Western District of Texas didn't include details of that settlement, but Wembanyama's claims against James T. Glodich have been dismissed as a result.
On Oct. 15, Wembanyama filed the lawsuit against the online retailer for their merchandise bearing an “El Wemby” slogan. The lawsuit's core issue was Glodich's use of Wembanyama's likeness in merchandise sales without prior authorization.
The lawsuit said that on August 1, 2023, Glodich filed a federal trademark application for EL WEMBY for “[s]hirts for El Wemby; [h]ooded sweatshirts; [t]-shirts for El Wemby.”
On Oct. 24 of last year, the day before Wembanyama’s NBA debut, Glodich filed a federal trademark application for Wemby's World for “retail good services.”
Moreover, on April 4, 2024, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued an Office Action against Glodich’s application for "El Wemby," refusing registration because Glodich’s mark “consists of or includes matter that may falsely suggest a connection with Victor Wembanyama, commonly referred to as ‘WEMBY.’”
On June 7 the USPTO issued took action against Glodich’s application for Wemby's World, again refusing registration of the slogan.
However, the suit stated, Glodich went on to register the domain name www.wembysworld.com and sell merchandise with unauthorized products bearing Wembanyama's likeness.
Several cease-and-desist letters were sent to Glodich and subsequently ignored, Wembanyama's lawsuit alleged, while merchandise was still being sold.
“If (the character) resembles a celebrity, no matter who it is – an athlete or a rock star, whoever it is – you cannot usurp their image for profit,” Michael Cohen, an intellectual property attorney told KENS 5 last month. “You just can’t. It’s a misappropriation of their likeness. Further than that, there have been cases where people have utilized a voice of a celebrity and if that voice is iconic enough, that can also be misappropriation of their likeness.”
Cohen says Wembanyama's team has a responsibility to protect his brand.
“Part of the power of a celebrity is their name, image and likeness,” he said. “That equates to revenue. That’s how they are able to get these big endorsements and big brands like Nike and Louis Vuitton. So, if there are any third parties that will have an impact on that, it will dilute the power of the (celebrity’s) name, image and likeness.”