The Walt Disney Company has filed an application to trademark the name “SEAL TEAM 6,” the name of the Navy SEAL team that killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan earlier this month.

Disney filed three applications with the United States Patent and Trademark Office on May 3, two days after the raid.

The applications show Disney Enterprises intend to use the name for clothing, footwear and headwear; toys, games, Christmas stockings, Christmas tree ornaments and decorations and snow globes.

Calls to the Walt Disney Co. were not immediately returned.

Sunil Thomas, a professor of marketing research at Cal State Fullerton, said Disney should expect some initial backlash from consumers.

“Initially at least, people may respond or feel that this is crass commercialization,” Thomas said. “In the long run, those kind of things fade over time.”

Despite the possibility of short-term backlash, Thomas said Disney’s attempt to trademark the name could benefit the company in the long-term.

“When you have a company like Disney, they have enough marketing muscle and financial backing to do what they want with that brand,” Thomas said. “It starts off with a strong patriotic association.”

According to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, getting a trademark can take three months to five years, depending on whether there are any public complaints or any concerns from the office.

I would imagine that if Walt Disney was still alive he would be quietly weeping in the corner of the board room 

Matt