Games Workshop Delusional about Space Marine Trademark

M.C.A. Hogarth is an author who has published several novels in ebook format. She has just had a book pulled (in ebook form anyway) from Amazon thanks to Games Workshop and a ridiculous trademark infrignement claim.

She has written a book called "Spots the Space Marine," and it appears that Games Workshop feels they invented the term and no one else should be able to use it. Never mind the fact that the term "space marine" has been around since the 1930s and has become a science fiction trope, they've been using it in Warhammer 40K since 1987!

I'm not a lawyer. In fact, I'm nowhere close; but this seems completely absurd to me. Why don't they go after elf and dwarf while they're at it? Those words are about as prevalent in the science fiction/fantasy culture as the term space marine is.

Unfortunately, Hogarth doesn't have the resources to take on a gaming giant like Games Workshop.

As she says in here livejournal entry about this (found here):


"To engage a lawyer to defend me from this spurious claim would cost more money than I have, certainly more than the book has ever earned me. Rather than earning money for my family, I’d be taking money from them, when previously my writing income paid for my daughter’s schooling. And I’d have to use the little time I have to write novels to fight a protracted legal battle instead."

Until I read this post, the 40K-themed RPGs on the market have been on my list of games to look into. Regardless of how this situation turns out, I've now crossed them off of that list. For them to have the gall to think they should have exclusive rights to a term that's been around for over 3/4 of a century disgusts me to no ends.

With companies like Evil Hat out there, doing their best to open the doors and make things more public for their fans, I can't imagine a worse move for a gaming company (I know, this isn't game related, but as far as I'm concerned the philosophy still applies) than attacking the very people who make their very existence possible.

I don't generally jump into "politics" like this, but I feel it's one of those situations where everyone who can should help spread the word of what's happening. Games Workshop is throwing their weight around because they think there won't be consequences for it. It's up to us in the geek community to spread the word and show that this isn't the case in order to prevent a precedent being set. So go read her page, spread the word and perhaps we can reach someone who CAN help make a difference for M.C.A. Hogarth.