Jägermeister's logo is not religiously offensive, says Swiss court
It should have been quite simple: Jägermeister wanted to put its iconic logo on things other than its unique brand of liqueur.
Things like cosmetics and mobile phones.
But the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property wasn’t having it.
According to a report in Swissinfo, an online arm of the Swiss Broadcasting Corp., the group refused on the grounds that Jägermeister’s logo — a stag with a shining cross between its antlers — might offend some religious folks.
After all, the logo is based on a Christian tale.
As Jägermeister’s own site says, the logo comes from the 8th-century tale of Saint Hubertus. “Once a wild huntsman,” the site says, “Hubertus had a vision of a mighty stag carrying a glowing cross between its antlers. The vision transformed him and afterwards he championed a greater respect for nature, eventually becoming known as the patron saint of hunters.”
But on Monday, the Federal Administrative Court of Switzerland ruled the logo is good to go.
The judges, according to Swissinfo, found the “intensive” use of the logo over time has “weakened its religious character” and it’s unlikely consumers, who mostly associate the logo with alcohol, would be offended.
So, consumers, get ready to be bombed with plenty of Jäger merch.
Chris Pastrick is a TribLive digital producer. An Allegheny County native, he began working for the Valley News Dispatch in 1993 and joined the Trib in 1997. He can be reached at cpastrick@triblive.com.
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