WWE has filed for another trademark as the company applied for “SmackDown” on May 31st for merchandise purposes with The United States Patent and Trademark Office. Here is the description:
“Mark For: SMACKDOWN trademark registration is intended to cover the categories of clothing, namely, tops, shirts, jackets, sweatshirts, hoodies; outerwear, namely, coats; bottoms, pants, shorts, underwear, dresses, pajamas, clothing ties, scarves, gloves, swimwear; Halloween and masquerade costumes; bandanas; championship trophy belts.”
SmackDown was a term coined by the Rock and later turned into a weekly television show in 1999. It has aired on various television networks after starting on UPN. It has aired on the likes of MyTV, USA Network, and Syfy, and currently airs on FOX.
WWE’s deal with FOX started in October 2019 for SmackDown while NBCU, the parent company of the USA Network, retained the rights to Raw. Both were for big money.
FOX originally wanted Raw because SmackDown was considered the “B” show of the company for years. However, the USA Network had the first right of refusal to match any offer FOX made. Now, SmackDown is viewed as the “A” show ahead of Raw because FOX reaches a larger audience as it’s on broadcast television instead of cable.
