Fender / FMIC have just announced their lawsuit win in a court in Germany that will change everything about the guitar industry. Effectively as of the 9th of March 2026 Fender has EU copyright protection on the Fender Stratocaster body shape. That means that guitars using that shape from brands like Schecter, ESP, Suhr, James Tyler, Jet and many, many more are now in breach of Fenders copyright and are effectively Illegal.
You must log in or # to comment.
Thats insane…
yeah is going to be interesting.
To follow up…Apparently this is slightly sensationlized, since the defandent never reacted to the suit. Lets see if they go after larger brands that are using the shape before blowing it up.
https://www.musicradar.com/guitars/fender-german-court-ruling-protecting-stratocaster-body-design
I thought he mentioned that in the video. I was definitely aware after watching it, but maybe it was from the comments.
i honestly just say the headline and the text blurp on my way too work so could not watch the video.
