One Direction win right to keep their name after reaching agreement with US band of same name

UK boy band One Direction have won the right to keep their name after reaching an agreement with an American band of the same name.

The two groups issued a news release from London saying the California-based group will change its name to Uncharted Shores.

The UK’s version – Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson – came together in 2010 after trying out individually for the British version of The X Factor.

They’ve since become a world sensation and their album Up All Night was the first by a UK act to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 all-genre albums chart.

News first broke of the legal war back in April when the California band claimed they had the name first.

The UK band reacted by countersuing the less famous group claiming they are trying to make money off their success.

Simon Cowell’s creation fought back against their US namesakes saying they had the name first.

The British One Direction previously said they have achieved ‘global fame and success’ and the unknown group are trying to make a name for themselves by riding their coattails.

The US version filed a lawsuit this spring claiming they had the name after it formed in 2009 – a year before Niall, Zayn, Liam, Harry and Louis had even met.

They asked the UK group to change its name claiming they had beaten their British counterparts to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, filing a trademark application before them.