Asahd Khaled's Company Spends $17,325 to File Applications to Register His Name as a Trademark

Like any proud dad, musical phenom DJ Khaled loves showing off his son, Asahd Tuck Khaled, who is about a year and a half old. Asahd is already so famous that his Instagram account has over 1.8 million followers. And recently, like most celebrity parents, his parents organizing the filing of applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ("USPTO") to register his name, and variants thereof, as trademarks.

On April 4th, ATK Entertainment, Inc. (ed. - short for "Asahd Tuck Khaled"?) filed three federal trademarks applications with the USPTO - one for ASAHD, one for ASAHD KHALED, and one for ASAHD TUCK KHALED. All three applications cover the same, incredibly broad range of goods and services spanning 21 classes. Some of the goods and services covered by these applications include:

• Fragrances; Perfumes; Cosmetics (Class 3);
• Baby food; Nutritional supplements (Class 5);
• DVDs, CDs, and audio and visual sound recordings featuring musical performances (Class 9);
• Baby teething rings; Pacifiers (Class 10);
• Baby carriages, baby strollers (Class 12);
• Jewelry (Class 14);
• Books in the field of music, motion pictures, and musical performers (Class 16);
• Handbags (Class 18);
• A variety of clothing (Class 25);
• Basketballs, baseballs, footballs (Class 28);
• Breakfast cereals (Class 30);
• Online retail store services featuring music, musical recordings, motion pictures, clothing and clothing accessories (Class 35);
• Entertainment services by a musical artist and producer, namely, musical composition for others and production of musical sound recordings; production of television programs; entertainment services in the nature of ongoing television programs in the field of children's entertainment, fashion, music, dance and sports (Class 41)

Because the USPTO charges filing fees per class, ATK Entertainment paid $5,775 in filing fees per application, or $17,325 total for all three (not including any fees paid to the law firm that filed the applications - Edell, Shapiro & Finnan, LLC in Gaithersburg, Maryland). Those fees top the approximately $12,000 Beyonce paid last June to file applications for the names of her twins.

If you aren't convinced these applications are actually associated with the real Asahd Khaled, below is a written consent signed by Asahd's mother and DJ Khaled's wife - Nicole Tuck - consenting to the use and registration of Asahd's name as a trademark. A written consent was filed for each of the three applications.

The written consent above is required because Section 2(c) of the Trademark Act prohibits the registration of a trademark consisting of or comprising a name, portrait, or signature identifying a particular living individual, except with that individual's (or in this case, their guardian's) written consent. Section 2(c) doesn't just apply to full names, but to nicknames, shortened names, pseudonyms, and stage names as well. TMEP 1206.01.

Before Asahd's trademarks can register, ATK Entertainment will need to start using his name as a trademark in conjunction with those goods and services listed in the applications and submit sufficient proof of same to the Trademark Office. In other words, don't be surprised if you see ASAHD cologne, or ASAHD jewelry, in the near future.

According to my quick search, these are the first federal trademark applications filed by ATK Entertainment, Inc.