50 Cent says he sold trademark to Bellator for $1 million

Did Curtis Jackson really sell a catchphrase to Bellator for $1 million?  If so, it would be his best business deal since he invested in Vitamin Water.  But, likely it’s a ruse to get MMA fans to talk about Bellator.

Jackson posted on social media (and reported by MMA Junkie) that he met with Scott Coker and made the transaction.  The reason?  Jackson, who has been using the hashtag “Get the Strap” in social media posts claims that he has sold the trademark phrase to Bellator for use on t-shirts, etc.

l did a deal today l sold (get the strap) for a million dollars to Viacom’s Bellator. So you will see lt on some cooler clothing shortly. 👀see how l make something out of nothing. LOL

A post shared by 50 Cent (@50cent) on Jun 26, 2018 at 2:29pm PDT

It is true that Jackson has applied for the trademark “Get the Strap” in a class of goods for clothing, “namely T-Shirts, Sweathshirts; Hats.”  Jackson filed for the phrase with the USPTO on April 17, 2018.  With the filing of the mark so recent, there has not been a determination by a USPTO examiner as to whether or not his mark would be approved.  Moreover, there’s no transaction listed that Bellator owns the mark.  The owner is listed as Curtis Jackson.

It does appear that 50 will be involved with Bellator in some way, or at least, he would like to be based on the below tweet regarding the promotion’s latest deal with DAZN.

Bellator signed a 9 figure deal yesterday! Which means…
DAZN deal could = shoulder programming with @50cent pic.twitter.com/O66NSpHHgq

— 50cent (@50cent) June 27, 2018

Payout Perspective:

It looks like Jackson will be a part of Bellator in some way or another.  Whether or not he sold the mark to Bellator is another question for the promotion really.  Why would you buy (or likely pay for a license) for a catchphrase that hasn’t even proven to be notable?  At this point, its not clear if the mark will be cleared by the USPTO as it must go through a process that will take several months and may meet opposition.  For instance, the NHL’s Las Vegas Golden Knights dealt with opposition over its name and the dispute went on throughout the hockey season and was not resolved until the Stanley Cup.  If Bellator has paid Jackson to license the catchphrase, you have to give it to the rapper for his business acumen.  He flipped a phrase without even a determination as to if he can be owner.  He just filed for it first.  But, perhaps not his real estate choices.