This town’s only big enough for one Blue Box, Blue Box Group says
I came across this story on a Seattle startup.
Bluebox Now is a Web-based marketing company. It had begun to build some momentum. It had a big customer and good prospects for outside funding.
Then it was hit with what one of its founders described as a “doozy” of a legal problem — it got a cease-and-desist letter from an app host called the “Blue Box Group,” also based in Seattle.
Bluebox Now says it’s changing its name.
The founder said they thought they could win the trademark dispute, but they couldn’t afford to find out.
“Instead of us paying $40,000 to fight this, we’re going to end up changing our name,” he said. “The blue box itself — the gift that we give — is still a key component to what we do. It’s just changing up the name, and we’re going to be OK with it.”
It’s good Bluebox Now was able to solve its problem and move on. It’s just too bad it had to suffer through what I imagine were at least a few stressful days and sleepless nights. All over an issue that could have been avoided through a careful trademark search.
It’s hard enough getting a new business off the ground. Don’t make it even more difficult by triggering a trademark dispute or having to abandon a name that’s starting to earn a good reputation.