Move to trademark Diana

The Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund has moved to register a Diana logo and the name Diana, Princess of Wales, as trademarks in the United States and Europe to stop the sale of merchandise that uses her image a memory. Yet ironically similar trademark protection may not be possible in the United Kingdom. Under British law it is not possible to claim possession of a face or a name. In the US it is possible for celebrities to regulate the use of their image.

There has been an unseemly rush to produce T-shirts, coins and other memorabilia bearing the late princess's name and the memorial fund wants to protect such revenue for the charities it represents. Stars in Britain have attempted to protect themselves from so-called "image theft" by trademarking individual aspects of the celebrity. Damon Hill has registered his eyes looking from a crash helmet and Eric Cantona has registered shirts marked "Cantona 7" and the catchphrase "Ooh Ah Cantona" as his own.