Ten-year-old entrepreneur's David vs Goliath battle against Sony takes a dramatic twist after tech giant accused him of stealing their trademark for hit TV show Shark Tank
An entrepreneurial 10-year-old boy who went toe-to-toe with tech giants Sony says he has come out on top after a two-year legal battle over a trademark.
Angus Copelin-Walters was just eight when his company Croc Candy lodged a trademark for 'Croc Tank' in 2017.
The plan was to create a vehicle to mentor and help children like Angus, who has dyslexia, develop ideas and learn about finance.
The name was inspired by the hit TV show Shark Tank on which entrepreneurs pitch their inventions and ideas to investors to obtain funding.
Angus Copelin-Walters was just eight when he lodged a trademark for 'Croc Tank' in 2017 in the hopes of kickstarting a mentoring initiative to help other kids develop ideas and learn about finance
Angus Copelin-Walters (pictured with his family) has won a two-year legal battle against Sony after the tech company locked the young businessman in a trademark dispute
But his plans were quickly put on halt when he went to sign up 'Croc Tank' and Sony Pictures Television, who own Shark Tank and the trademark, objected.
'We talked about it and some people said not to worry but Angus wanted to keep going,' his mother, Joanne Walters, told Daily Mail Australia.
'It's actually a process that goes through IP Australia, it's not actually the court system at that stage.'
Angus stood his ground for more than two and a half years as the legal case continued to progress, with his family hiring a lawyer.
'Then it went into negotiations so Angus withdrew the trademark in the end under the settlement, and that's what he was happy with,' Ms Walters said.
Angus had been running his Croc Candy company for more than a year when he thought of the innovative idea to help other kids with learning difficulties
Angus stood his ground for more than two and a half years as the legal case continued to progress, with the young boy hiring a lawyer
'Sony were just protecting their brand... though I don't think a boy from Darwin is a really big threat.'
Angus, a huge fan of the Shark Tank, fell in even more love with the show after finding out three of the US-based 'Sharks' also have dyslexia.
The budding businessman said he was happy with the confidential settlement he reached with Sony after fearing the legal battle would never end.
'The dispute was not a court case. It was a process of opposition through IP Australia and then a negotiation to reach a settlement,' Ms Walters said.
With both the legal stoush and the coronavirus pandemic hitting this year, Angus hasn't stopped with his business ideas.
Angus is a huge fan of the show Shark Tank and is inspired by the ideas, and was even moreso a fan after finding out three of the US-based 'sharks' also have dyslexia
During lockdown he learnt how to sew and now has a new brand 'Ango Mango'.
'We started to make some walker bags and coasters for people to brighten up their day just as a bit of a surprise,' Ms Walters said.
'That developed onto people asking him to make some other bags and while it was quiet with the candy it's been going really well.'
'Making things are being creative is helping him, I guess I think dyslexic people are like that. They just have a different way of thinking and so that's why this entrepreneurship is suiting his personality.'
Angus' workshops for kids kick off during October Business Month with the revised name Kids Can.
