Save The Hobbit!

The Hobbit, in Bevois Valley has been of Southampton’s most eclectic pubs for many years and is always popular with students. It is famed for its live music, its colourful JR Tolkien-themed cocktails and its massive beer garden.

However, the pub has been threatened by those who have claimed the intellectual property rights to Tolkien’s work. This is nothing more than bullying by a big American company as it is quite obvious that the pub is not doing any harm or competing for its royalties.

There has been a massive response of protest about this from the general public, with the Facebook group set up as part of the campaign having over 42 000 ‘Likes’ and this is growing by the minute. Thousands of people who have never been in the pub have added their support as the principle is the point here, of corporate bullying and petty legal matters.

It’s reached the news and I would urge you to ‘Like’ the Facebook page to add your weight to this campaign. Even Stephen Fry has Tweeted to add his approval.

If the suits win and The Hobbit has to change its name and all its cocktails then it will set a dangerous precedent allowing other companies to bully smaller businesses. I totally agree with protecting corporate identity but that is not relevant in this case as the copyright will have expired a long time ago. It is a step too far!

The Hobbit pub, Southampton
The Hobbit pub, Southampton

 

Last updated on Thursday 15 March 2012 by GaryReggae

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *