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Slogan Squabble

Red Bull Clips Polish Charity's Wings

By Charles Hawley in Berlin

For seven years, a Polish charity has been collecting money for impoverished children under the slogan "give children wings." The drinks maker Red Bull thinks it copied the slogan -- and is taking the charity to court.

The energy drink Red Bull claims that it will "give you wings." But should you be so impudent as to use a phrase that sounds anything like the company's oft-repeated slogan, you should know that Red Bull is also in the business of clipping wings.

That, at least, has been the experience of a Polish foundation dedicated to collecting money for schoolbooks and clothing for impoverished children. The group, called Fundacja Gražyny Malecha, has been in operation for seven years -- and it chose the phrase "give children wings" as its slogan.

Late last year, though, Red Bull decided that the foundation, which is named after its founder, was infringing on its trademarked territory, and demanded that charity, based in the Silesian town of Chorzow, abandon its catchphrase. When Fundacja Gražyny Malecha refused, Red Bull filed a complaint with the patent office in Warsaw.

"After seven years of hard work, we are suddenly unable to do anything," Jaroslaw Hola, a volunteer with the foundation, told SPIEGEL ONLINE on Friday. "We can just sit here and cry. We wanted to start a large campaign this year and we already had a sponsor ready to invest hundreds of thousands of Polish zloty. But now, he wants to wait until the issue with Red Bull is settled."

That could take a while. The foundation has decided against accepting a Red Bull offer to pay the foundation €4,000 ($6,250) to change its slogan. Now, the issue will likely go to trial -- meaning up to two years of legal battles the charity cannot afford.

"Everyone in our group is a volunteer and 95 percent of the money we raise goes to the children," Hola said. "Red Bull has money for expensive lawyers, but we don't."

Red Bull, for its part, claims that it has not been playing the role of the bully. Christina Sponer, a spokeswoman for the Austria-based drinks company, told Süddeutsche Zeitung that Red Bull offered to "allow" the charity to continue using their slogan on the basis of an unpaid license. She says the charity refused and demanded €1 million in damages.

That, says Hola, is not true, claiming that no such demand was ever made. "We are furious that Red Bull speaks to us out of their position of power," he complained. "They don't ask; they demand and issue threats."

In an effort to draw attention to its plight, the charity has pinned its hopes on the media and on a signature-gathering campaign on its Web site ( Polish only). But should the case end up in court, it will make it difficult for the charity to continue its work with donors concerned that contributions could end up paying for legal fees rather than helping children.

"For the last year," says Hola, "we have been helping a small boy who has no fingers. We wanted to pay for his surgery this year. But now it is doubtful whether we will be able to find a sponsor."

With reporting by Marta Solarz in Warsaw