CTA Replica #3200's Bank

[BusHunter]

Came across this bank at Target downtown on State/Madison, so I took some pics. I'll mention it in case you guys are interested. It's billed as a Chicago car not a CTA, but it looks like a #3200. It's located on the first floor right outside the escalator facing north. (or in the path to the State street south entrance) It was selling for $19.99. They had plenty at least 20 or 25. I took my pics on the 20th though. Both ends have the lights though like a #5-50, so it's like a single car. They have other Chicago tourist keepsakes there but this was the only CTA object.

So i wonder can they legally sell this even though it's not billed as a CTA car? (but it looks like one) Maybe it is being licensed through the city if that's possible. BTW, I looked I can't seem to find this online, maybe if I knew the manufacturer, which I didn't look for at the time.

[Busjack]

13 hours ago, BusHunter said:

So i wonder can they legally sell this even though it's not billed as a CTA car? (but it looks like one) Maybe it is being licensed through the city if that's possible.

That's a good question. It seems like it is like other things* that aren't licensed and use generic equivalents.** Note that there isn't a CTA logo, and the blue ball doesn't have a red C, either. However, since ctagifts sells something equivalent, it could sue for unfair competition, if it were worth it to sue for maybe $100 in damages.

____________________

*One can think of things like the "Big Game" the first weekend in February, or the most obnoxious ad I heard by some casino about "the leadoff man for the north side 9 hitting a home run," even though we know Rizzo gets paid to sell Italian Beef.

**Only thing that seems distinctive is the Chicago flag, which I doubt is under copyright.

[MTRSP1900-CTA3200]

On 6/23/2017 at 6:34 PM, BusHunter said:

Came across this bank at Target downtown on State/Madison, so I took some pics. I'll mention it in case you guys are interested. It's billed as a Chicago car not a CTA, but it looks like a #3200. It's located on the first floor right outside the escalator facing north. (or in the path to the State street south entrance) It was selling for $19.99. They had plenty at least 20 or 25. I took my pics on the 20th though. Both ends have the lights though like a #5-50, so it's like a single car. They have other Chicago tourist keepsakes there but this was the only CTA object.

So i wonder can they legally sell this even though it's not billed as a CTA car? (but it looks like one) Maybe it is being licensed through the city if that's possible. BTW, I looked I can't seem to find this online, maybe if I knew the manufacturer, which I didn't look for at the time.

I'm not going to lie, I want one.  Reminds me of when I looked into buying a Japanese piggy bank shaped like a train. They play station sounds when you add coins.

The only officially licensed CTA products I know of are the O-Scale MTH CTA subway sets released in the 2000s. They had stickers placed on the box that said official CTA licensed product. A relative recently bought me a Chicago themed Disney product that came in a boxed shaped like an L car, but it didn't have CTA logos or real destination signs. Not sure if it was licensed or not. I'm also aware of various video game renditions of the L, most notably in a game called Watch Dogs.