US social media giant Reddit fails to block Singapore firm’s ‘Reddio’ trademark registration

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US social media giant Reddit fails to block Singapore firm’s ‘Reddio’ trademark registration​

Published Mar 18, 2026, 02:30 PM
Updated Mar 18, 2026, 06:02 PM

Reddio's mark, which includes a stylised device resembling a radio or robot face, suggested a more technical or functional form of communication, according to the IP adjudicator.

PHOTOS: REDDIT, REDDIO

Vihanya Rakshika

SINGAPORE – US social media giant Reddit has failed in its bid to stop a Singapore-based blockchain firm from registering the trademark “Reddio” here, after a tribunal found that the two names are not similar enough to confuse consumers.

In a decision released on March 5, an IP adjudicator from the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore dismissed Reddit’s opposition to the trademark application filed by Reddio, allowing the company to proceed with registering its mark.

Reddio, which was incorporated in Singapore in November 2021, provides services aimed at helping developers build blockchain applications, including tools that allow the deployment of smart contracts and the creation of digital assets such as non-fungible tokens.

Reddit had opposed the application on the grounds that the Reddio mark was too similar to its own trademarks and could cause confusion among consumers.

The US firm, which operates a popular online platform made for thousands of user-created communities known as subreddits, argued that the competing mark infringed several of its registered trademarks, including the word “Reddit” and its alien-head device logo.

But adjudicator Sim Junhui found that, taken as a whole, the marks were “more different than similar”.

While the two words share most of the same letters, the adjudicator said “the marks have (only) a moderate level of visual similarity”, noting that the final letters differ and that the marks create different overall impressions.

The decision also found that the names sound different when spoken. “Reddit” is typically pronounced with two syllables, while “Reddio” would likely be spoken with three.

Conceptually, the marks were also found to convey different ideas.

Reddit’s branding was described as evoking a playful alien-like character associated with online communities, while the Reddio mark, which includes a stylised device resembling a radio or robot face, suggested a more technical or functional form of communication.

As a result, the adjudicator concluded that the marks were dissimilar overall and unlikely to confuse the average consumer.

Although the tribunal accepted that the companies’ services had some overlap in the broad field of computer technology, it found that Reddio users would likely be sophisticated developers or programmers who would exercise care when choosing such services.

Given the specialised nature of blockchain and software development tools, the likelihood that such users would mistakenly believe the services came from the same source was low, the adjudicator said.

“Therefore, I am of the view that the likelihood of confusion, even considering the similarities of the services in the application mark and the Reddit marks, is low,” the adjudicator said.


Reddit had also argued that its brand was well known in Singapore and that allowing the Reddio mark could damage its interests.

But the adjudicator said the evidence provided did not sufficiently show that Reddit’s trademarks were well known here at the relevant time in 2021 when Reddio applied for the mark.

While Reddit’s platform is accessible globally and includes communities discussing Singapore, the decision said the company had not shown enough evidence linking its brand recognition specifically to Singapore users.

Having dismissed all grounds of opposition, the adjudicator ruled that the trademark application can proceed to registration.

Reddio was also awarded costs of $11,726.50.

The Straits Times has contacted Reddit on whether it plans to appeal against the decision.