(OPINION) Did you know that the term “worship leader” is trademarked by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)? The man behind the social media account, “Rogue Worship Leader,” a worship director, made this discovery after his Facebook account was shut down for trademark infringement.
“The company Worship Leader is essentially reporting me for violating trademark laws because I have the term, ‘worship leader,’ in my name,” he said in an Instagram video posted Thursday. “How crazy is that? This is a common term. This is a job title. It’s a term that has been used by churches, thousands of churches all over the world.”
“Hey, worship leaders, I want to share a little revelation that I found out this past week: Your ministry position, your job title is actually a trademarked term,” said the worship director, who has asked to remain anonymous, in his video. His Instagram account, “Rogue Worship Leader,” posts worship leader memes, often from the Star Wars franchise. He explained, “Last week, my Facebook page, ‘Rogue Worship Leader,’ got taken down out of nowhere.”
The worship director says that Facebook sent him a notification that he had violated community guidelines. When he appealed the decision, he discovered the account that had flagged him was Authentic Media LLC. According to its website, the purpose of Authentic Media “is to equip its brands to tell stories that inspire a lifestyle of worship.”
According to screenshots the worship director sent to ChurchLeaders, eight of his posts “were reported by Authentic Media LLC or their authorized representative.”
“The trademark that I was infringing was the term, ‘worship leader,’” he said. He then discovered that in 2016, Authentic Media had filed a trademark with the USPTO for that term. In an attempt to discover why Authentic Media had done so, he discovered that Authentic Media is an umbrella company for several brands, including one called “Worship Leader.”
“I just find this crazy, that a company called Worship Leader can trademark the term, ‘worship leader,’” said the worship director, “and then come after a page with ‘worship leader’ in the title…we’re clearly completely different brands. I’m not stealing any market from them, there’s no brand confusion. I just don’t understand why they’re doing this.” (READ MORE)
