The Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey effect has gone worldwide with nearly every single business wanting to cash in on some Fifty Shades of Grey action. It looks like things are going too far and E.L. James is getting fed up with people making money off her books and her protagonists Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey.
Ever since Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey have gone mainstream, one mum in the Midlands in the UK has had an idea to set up theme parties based on the Fifty Shades of Grey books, where women can find their own bedroom confidence from the antics of Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey.
Everything looked great for Tina Winters when she came up on with the idea to do bedroom parties for those looking to get closer to the world of Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, until a letter came from E.L. James’s lawyers asking that all references from the books be cut from her activities.
“It’s unbelievable,” comments Winters, “This book has gone all round the world. Everyone has been using the book title to sell lingerie, fashion, catwalk shows, you name it. Sex shop brands and department stores, they’ve all jumped on the bandwagon – yet I’m the one who gets the letter.” Winters is furious for being singled out for her Anastasia Steel and Christian Grey inspired parties, “I find it quite bizarre. I’ve told them that I only run a small business in the Midlands, and I don’t know why they have chosen to write to me. It’s like a battle between David and Goliath.”
Tina Winters may have been a fan of E.L. James’s books, Fifty Shades of Grey, which tell the story of Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey as they enter a sadomasochistic relationship, but she’s become disillusioned with the author, accusing James of picking and choosing the publicity when it suited her.
“You would think the author would be pleased with the publicity. That’s what made the book so successful in the first place.”
It’s easy to see where Winters is coming from, E.L. James took her characters Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey from the Twilight books, writing a piece of fan fiction based on Bella Swan and Edward Cullen, but it looks like the Fifty Shades author wants to copyright her books as a brand. So does that mean that Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey are going the same way as Coca-Cola?
E.L. James’s agent, Valerie Hoskins, commented on the letter sent to Tina Winters: “We’re sending letters out every day. This isn’t personal to Ms Winters. That’s just what happens with brands that become big. You can’t just hijack something that someone else owns and use it for your own commercial adventures. She wouldn’t do it with Coca-Cola. We admire her entrepreneurship. If she wants to apply for an official license then we are happy to discuss this with her. Our trademark application is moving through the various stages.
So it looks like we need to be careful when using the Anastasia Steel and Christian Grey, or any other Fifty Shades trademark.
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