Fender Wins Strat Body Copyright Case

https://www.guitarworld.com/music-industry/fender-legal-ruling-protect-stratocaster-body-design

Are we headed for a world where every S-style guitar is uglier than what Fender sells?

Headstock shape has been protected by trademark for decades. Result: lots of really ugly/awkward inline-peg headstock shapes from companies trying to steer clear of being sued by Fender.

Fender won a copyright suit here, not a trademark, and the ruling is just Germany and "other EU countries" right now... so what that means legally... @#$% if I know. I'm not a lawyer... but I'm worried we're about to see some really awkward non-Fender-Fender-style guitars hit the market.

Well that sucks. I hope EU distributors like Thomann and Anderton's take them to court, it's been 60 years and entire brands have existed for the sole purpose of making better Strats than they do. Odd angle that they'd sue for Copyright as in artistic ownership when multiple Trademark cases have declared the shape to be generic in the past. Tom Anderson and Suhr make incredible instruments that I'd recommend over any Fender Custom Shop, big fan of G&L too (rip)

This is such an abuse of power that I don't even know where to start. Or if I even want to start.

This is such an abuse of power that I don't even know where to start. Or if I even want to start.

what makes it more ridiculous is that Leo F and George Fullerton who invented the shape and would be most entitled to some sort of copyright or trademark haven't been with fender since the 70s and are also pretty dead at this late period of guitar history. if anyone had the right to charge rent on a guitar shape it was those 2, not a bunch of shareholders who've never run a band saw! but there ta go, enjoy your late stage capitalism... get ready to pay rent on everything until it collapses into murderous anarchy... or something

I didn't know where to start but I knew where to end.

Apparently it's because Fender can't make quality guitars anymore (if they ever made them at all). There are now a ton of brands that make Stratocasters and other shapes much better than Fender (Deviser for example). If I have $2,000 to spare, I definitely won't buy a Fender. I trust more Japanese manufacturers such as Momose, Atelier Z, Moon. What would you think if you bought a Fender Custom Shop and found out the neck was crooked? What if the frets come out of the fretboard? Fenders charge too much for the quality they offer. That's why they have to destroy their competitors in such ways.