Fender Musical Instruments has sent cease-and-desist letters to guitar makers including Yamaha and PRS, claiming newly acquired European copyright protection for the Stratocaster’s distinctive double-cutaway body shape. The move has divided the global guitar industry, with some companies altering designs and others challenging Fender’s claims in litigation that could determine whether competitors may continue selling Strat-style instruments in Europe.

The dispute follows Fender’s unsuccessful 2003 attempt to trademark the shape in the United States, where the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ruled in 2009 that Fender had waited too long to police copying. The tribunal found that, after roughly 50 years of widespread imitation, consumers regarded the shape as generic rather than uniquely identifying Fender; evidence included prominent musicians using similar guitars and a dictionary illustration of the shape for “guitar”.