The Seattle Times yesterday wrote about Microsoft’s abrupt decision to stop referring to its forthcoming Windows 8 user interface as “Metro.”
Whether it was an internal project name or external trademark, the change reportedly led to some confusion.
Word is a German company using the same mark had threatened to sue.
I got a few quotes in the article about how even big companies sometimes don’t do their homework in selecting a name. I’m not saying that’s what happened here, since Microsoft changed course before most consumers were exposed to the mark. From a trademark perspective, that’s what’s important, since a trademark tells consumers where a product comes from.
Other companies have been less fortunate. You’d be shocked if you knew about the worldwide advertising campaigns that name-brand companies have launched promoting products held back by problematic new trademarks. (I’ve been involved in two such situations, which I can’t discuss because of confidentiality issues.) Not a good way to spend precious marketing dollars.
The point is, even companies with massive resources sometimes don’t do their homework. Other trademark owners can learn from their lessons. Research your proposed trademark before investing in it. Make sure it doesn’t implicate anyone else’s rights. And if you plan to register it, make sure you’ll be able to do so.