Atty. Buko dela Cruz believed that Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto, and Joey de Leon could use the ‘Eat Bulaga’ title anytime but chose to respect the rule of law.
During a press conference held at E.A.T studios on December 6, 2023, the lawyer of TVJ said that the trademark appeal made by his clients only covered the right to use Eat Bulaga on merchandise, and it doesn’t mean that the veteran comedians were not allowed by law to use the title of the longest-running noontime show.
“Ang opinyon talaga ng Divina Law… pwede nang gamitin kahit noon pa, even before the decision came out dahil nga ‘yung rehistro nila hindi para sa entertainment. Ang rehistro nila ay para sa merchandise gaya ng sinabi ni Tito Sen,” said Atty. Dela Cruz.
However, TVJ chose to respect the due process and let Television and Production Exponents (TAPE) Inc. use the Eat Bulaga title for now.
“Sila ang pumili e. Si TVJ ang nagparaya st sinabing ‘ayaw namin ng gulo. Tutal may proseso, sundan natin ang proseso’. Nirespeto nila. Ngayong lumabas na at sinasabi mismo ng gobyerno na ang talagang may ari ang may karapatan sa title na ‘Eat Bulaga’ o ‘EB’ ay ang TVJ, ay dapat sila naman ang rumespeto para isa lang ang gagamit. Kung ang tanong is kailan pwedeng gamitin, anytime,” he stated.
Vic said that they would only use the Eat Bulaga once TAPE Inc. stopped insisting that they owned the title.
“Siguro pag tumigil na ‘yung gumagamit na iba at nagpakita ng respeto, ‘yun na siguro ang tamang panahon,” he said.
Meanwhile, TAPE Inc. said that they would explore all legal remedies to reverse the decision of the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL).