$5M here, $5M there, and pretty soon you are talking serious money.
<Microsoft To Pay $5 Mln In Internet
Explorer Settlement. Dow Jones Newswires
CHICAGO (AP)--Microsoft Corp. agreed Wednesday to
pay $5 million to continue using the name Internet
Explorer for the browser software it has heavily promoted
for three years.
>...<Microsoft was in the awkward position of arguing that the
name of its widely used browser was not a brand name but
merely two words that described a common computer
function.
The software giant argued that SyNet did not deserve
trademark protection on the name because it wasn't the
first to use it and because the words "Internet Explorer"
are merely descriptive, like cola, and not a brand, like
Coke.
After the settlement was announced, Microsoft said it was
still confident of its legal position.
"We are confident we would have won this case on the
merits but we are pleased to put this issue behind us,"
Microsoft said in a statement. "We have said all along that
we were open to resolving this issue without the need for
expensive and time-consuming litigation...>
See, they really are nice fellas, out to support what is best for the consumer. Right. They hung a little company out to dry for YEARS in protracted court procedings.
R. |
