Trademark office denies Mariah Carey 'Queen of Christmas'

All Mariah Carey wanted was to patent the title Queen of Christmas, but it seems the singer is unlikely to get her way in the face of opposition from another singer known for her festive hits.

All Mariah Carey wanted was to patent the title Queen of Christmas, but it seems the singer is unlikely to get her way in the face of opposition from another singer known for her festive hits.

All Mariah Carey wanted was to trademark the title Queen of Christmas, but it seems the singer is unlikely to get her way in the face of opposition from another singer known for her festive hits.

Carey has one of the season’s most-played songs in All I Want for Christmas is You and had sought to capitalise on its popularity by obtaining the legal rights to certain phrases.

The star tried to trademark Queen of Christmas and Princess of Christmas for use on holiday-related products. Her request was denied by the US Patent and Trademark Office after she failed to respond in time to an opposition filing by Elizabeth Chan, a prolific artist who describes herself as “the world’s only full-time pop Christmas recording artist” and who has written more than 100 Christmas songs.

“That’s just not the right thing to do. Christmas is for everyone. It’s meant to be shared; it’s not meant to be owned.” Mariah Carey in Apple TV Christmas show.

“I feel very strongly that no one person should hold on to anything around Christmas or monopolise it in the way that Mariah seeks to in perpetuity,” Chan told Variety.

“That’s just not the right thing to do. Christmas is for everyone. It’s meant to be shared; it’s not meant to be owned.”

Other singers, such as Darlene Love, singer of Christmas (Baby Please Come Home), also objected.

Chan said Carey’s move went beyond the music business. “She’s trying to trademark this in every imaginable way - clothing, liquor products, masks, dog collars - it’s all over the map,” she said. “If you knit a ‘queen of Christmas’ sweater, you should be able to sell it on Etsy to somebody else so they can buy it for their grandma. It’s crazy - it would have that breadth of registration.”

Carey, 52, released All I Want for Christmas is You in 1994. It has become one of the best-selling songs of all time.