Jack Daniel’s sends very polite letter

Jack Daniel’s has sent what is said to be the most polite cease and desist letter to the author of a new novel.

Spot the difference

The brand believed the front cover of Patrick Wensink’s new novel, Broken Piano For President, looked a little too similar to the famous black and white label used on bottles of Jack Daniel’s.

They sent a letter, which reads: “We are certainly flattered by your affection for the brand, but while we appreciate the pop culture appeal of Jack Daniel’s we also have to be diligent to ensure that Jack Daniel’s trademarks are used correctly.”

“As an author you can certainly understand our position and the need to contact you. You may even have run into similar problems with your own intellectual property.”

It adds that because Wensink is a “Louisville neighbour and a fan of the brand we simply request that you change the cover design when the book is reprinted.

“If you would be willing to change the design sooner than that (including on the digital version) we would be willing to contribute a reasonable amount towards the cost of doing so.”

The letter came to light after Mr Wensink posted it on his website.

A consequence has been a lot of publicity for the new novel.

The book went to the top of the Amazon satirical books chart and was the number six bestseller overall. His website hits jumped from 20 a day to 200,000 in three days after it was picked up by several blogs.