TVJ says court order barring TAPE, GMA from using Eat Bulaga ‘immediately executory’

Vic Sotto, Tito Sotto and Joey de Leon. Image: Instagram/@tvjofficial

Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon, collectively known as TVJ, claimed that the order prohibiting TAPE Inc. and GMA from using the Eat Bulaga trademark is immediately executory regardless of whether the production company and the network files an appeal.

The Marikina Regional Trial Court earlier ruled in favor of the trio on the copyright infringement and unfair competition case against TAPE and GMA, affirming that the veteran hosts own the Eat Bulaga trademark.

“After a rigorous proceeding that lasted five months, TVJ emerged victorious in their copyright infringement and unfair competition case against Television and Production Exponents Inc. (TAPE) and GMA-7,” read the statement on TVJ’s Instagram page on Friday, Jan. 5.

“In a Decision dated 22 December 2023, which was received by TVJ’s lawyers from DivinaLaw on January 5, 2024, the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 273 of Marikina City granted TVJ’s Complaint against TAPE,” it continued. “As such, the court prohibited TAPE and GMA from using the trademarks ‘EB’ and ‘Eat Bulaga,’ the Eat Bulaga jingle, from its shows.”

The ruling also stated that De Leon was the one who formulated the Eat Bulaga name.

Quoting a portion from the decision, TVJ wrote: “In view of defendant TAPE’s failure to make a categorical and specific denial of the claim of Joey that he coined, formulated, and worded the title Eat Bulaga including the specific explanation how such a portmanteau was created, given the millions of words in the dictionary, the court, therefore, rules that plaintiffs have successfully proved and established, by preponderance of evidence, that Joey and his co-plaintiffs Tito and Vic should be credited with the formulation and creation of the mark Eat Bulaga.”

TVJ also cited the 2020 Revised Rules of Procedure for Intellectual Property Rights Cases stating that “any order issued by the court is immediately executory.”

“This means that the RTC’s ruling will already be enforced even if TAPE or GMA files an appeal,” the statement concluded.

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A post shared by TVJ Productions Inc. (@tvjofficial)

Among those who celebrated TVJ’s win were Maja Salvador, Maine Mendoza, Vic’s son Oyo Sotto, and De Leon’s children Jako and Jocas.

Image: Instagram/@tvjofficial

Image: Instagram/@tvjofficial

Eat Bulaga is TVJ. TVJ is Eat Bulaga. 😌🙌🏻 https://t.co/i0QdkOFMzf

— Maine Mendoza (@mainedcm) January 5, 2024

INQUIRER.net has reached out to the camp of TAPE for a comment but has yet to receive a response.