Taylor Swift Is Trademarking Herself

Taylor Swift is locking down more than just her song catalog. The singer's company has filed three trademark applications aimed at curbing AI misuse of her identity, reports Variety. Two are sound trademarks, for "Hey, it's Taylor Swift" and "Hey, it's Taylor," and one is a visual trademark of a well-known photographic image of Swift from her Eras tour, notes the Guardian. It covers Swift "holding a pink guitar, with a black strap and wearing a multi-colored iridescent bodysuit with silver boots," per the application cited by Variety. "She is standing on a pink stage in front of a multi-colored microphone with purple lights in the background."

The move mirrors a strategy already used by Matthew McConaughey, who has secured protection for his "All right, all right, all right" catchphrase and other clips. Swift, for her part, has already been the subject of AI deepfakes, including pornographic images and fabricated political endorsements. "Ultimately, Taylor Swift and Matthew McConaughey's recent trademark filings are testing new theories on how trademark law will work in the AI age," writes attorney Josh Gerben in a blog post. It may take a federal case to see how well they hold up, and "I look forward to the blockbuster case when Swift sues the AI platforms," he adds.