Meghan Markle has officially abandoned her bid to trademark the name of her Archetypes podcast, suggesting she is moving on from the award-winning show.
The "strategic shift" could see her take her podcasting in an all new direction, after the disintegration of her deal with streaming giant Spotify earlier this year.
Following the split, speculation arose that the royal could move the show to another platform, such as Amazon, but new documents from U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) hint that any platform migration would likely also involve a rebrand.
Meghan launched the Archetypes podcast in August 2022, with the aim to "dissect, explore and subvert the labels that try to hold women back." Over 12 episodes, the duchess interviewed a range of celebrities from Paris Hilton to Mariah Carey, and made a number of personal reflections about her experiences with stereotypes and labels.
The show won Meghan a People's Choice Award and a Gracie Award, though soon after the shock news broke that she and Prince Harry had parted ways with Spotify.
A joint statement from Archewell Audio (Harry and Meghan's production company) and Spotify at the time said: "Spotify and Archewell Audio have mutually agreed to part ways and are proud of the series we made together."
The amicable nature of the statement was undermined when in the days after its release a Spotify executive labeled the duke and duchess "f****** grifters," on his own podcast.
From March 2022, Archewell Audio sought to trademark the word "Archetypes" for podcasting and digital media purposes. This bid faced some pushback, culminating in an initial rejection from the USPTO in January 2023, on the basis that it could be confused with a trademark already in existence.
The production company filed extensions to re-examine their application, before finally filing a formal request to abandon the process in August. An official notice of abandonment recognizing that the application would not be taken further was served by the USPTO on September 21.
Archewell Audio didn't need a trademark to use the name Archetypes, but a marketing expert previously told Newsweek that the process was a standard practice that formed an "important element of building and protecting a brand."
At the time of Harry and Meghan's split with Spotify, a spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal that Meghan was still committed to developing content for the listenership she had built during her time with the streamer.
"Meghan is continuing to develop more content for the Archetypes audience on another platform," they said.
Though this commitment to her audience remains, the move to abandon trademarking the Archetypes name suggests a potential rebrand or move away from the show altogether, presenting the duchess with an opportunity to look creatively into the future.
"Meghan's move to abandon the trademark bid for Archetypes signifies a strategic shift in her content creation efforts," entertainment expert and founder of MarkMeets, Mark Boardman, told Newsweek of the move.
"Walking away from something is always a tough decision, but it shows Meghan is willing to try again and re-evaluate," he said.
"While the initial Spotify statement expressed pride in the podcast show, her subsequent actions suggest a desire to take a different approach to content creation and find new ways to further her audience. Abandoning the Archetypes trademark bid would be part of Meghan's broader strategy to expand her presence in the entertainment industry."
Meghan and Archewell Audio haven't yet announced their next podcast project. Alongside their audio projects, the duchess and Prince Harry have also produced content for video streaming site Netflix.
In December 2022, the couple released their eponymous Harry & Meghan docuseries for the platform. It has also been announced that they are working on their first scripted content for the screen, with an adaptation of a romantic novel, Meet Me at the Lake.
Newsweek approached representatives of Meghan Markle via email for comment.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
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