Everybody loves arcade bars. These trendy gathering places mix drinking and socializing with video games and nostalgia – appealing to a wide variety of patrons. The easy shorthand portmanteau, “barcade,” is often used to describe these establishments. However, have you ever noticed that the term barcade is actually rarely used in the names or advertising for the establishments?

As you may expect from a blog on legal topics, there is a legal reason for this – BARCADE is a federally-protected trademark for arcade bars owned by a company in Brooklyn, NY. Not only does this establishment own exclusive rights to the term, but this business actively – and some would say, aggressively – polices and enforces against unlicensed use of the term by sending cease-and-desist letters to establishments it thinks are infringing on its mark.