Tiger Pause: Supremes Strip Exxon’s Stripes

WASHINGTON--The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that Kellogg’s can go forward with a lawsuit against ExxonMobil, saying its cartoon tiger-in-your-tank mascot infringes on “Tony the Tiger” of Sugar Frosted Flakes fame. Both cartoon tigers have been Grrreat at selling their respective products for more than 30 years.

The fur started flying in 1996 when Kellogg’s sued Exxon, claiming that the non-Tony tiger was infringing on its trademark by selling food in gas station convenience stores. A judge threw out the case in 1998, but then it was resurrected by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this spring, and now after the Supreme Court’s latest ruling the case will be back in front of the same judge early next year.

The Supreme Court’s decision not to hear ExxonMobil’s appeal of the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit sends the case back to the District Court in Memphis for a trial on whether the public can tell the difference between the Exxon cartoon tiger and Kellogg’s Tony the Tiger,” ExxonMobil said in a statement.

Exxon’s tiger has been featured in gasoline advertising since the 1960s. The then-Standard Oil Co. urged drivers to “put a tiger in your tank.”

“During this time, the Exxon cartoon tiger has peacefully coexisted with a number of tiger trademarks, including Tony,” according to Exxon.

(Tony first earned his Frosted Flakes marketing stripes in 1952. Exxon’s tiger in your tank campaign took a lengthy catnap through the 1980s, and then it was revived in 1992 when Exxon opened its TigerMart gas station convenience stores.)

“We are pleased that after the District Court’s initial grant of summary judgment in favor of ExxonMobil, Kellogg abandoned its effort to block ExxonMobil’s use of the Exxon cartoon tiger with motor fuels and limited its claim strictly to the use of the cartoon tiger to promote our convenience stores and the food and beverage products they sell,” Exxon said.

“ExxonMobil is quite confident that consumers recognize the Exxon cartoon tiger and do not confuse it with Tony the Tiger. We would invite Kellogg to join ExxonMobil’s efforts to save real tigers rather than try to eliminate a cartoon tiger.”

Because of its long association with tigers, ExxonMobil, in 1995, in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation launched the Save the Tiger Fund and has committed $9 million in the international effort to assist in the long-term survival of the wild tiger. More information about the Save the Tiger Fund can be found at www.5tigers.com or by calling 1-800-5TIGERS.