Fans in uproar over Yao Ming sanitary pad deal

0 Comments | AFP, November, 2006

BEIJING (AFP) — A Chinese businessman has triggered outrage over his plan to register the name of China's most famous basketball player, Yao Ming, as a trademark for a women's sanitary napkin. The application has sparked vigorous opposition from the Houston Rockets center's business team and anger among Yao's fans, Xinhua news agency said.

"This kind of registration is obviously malicious," the report quoted Lu Hao, a member of Yao's business team, as saying. "It's unbelievable that someone could do such a thing... we are going to oppose this proposal." Businessman Xiao Senwen, from southern China's Guangdong Province, submitted the application and is seeking the trademark for a range of products including sanitary pads, diapers, sportswear, beer and metalware, the report...