Geeks are sexy...and so are detergents...
Hey pals, sorry for not keeping this space active for a while. I've been busy with my finals and then guess what...my graduation! Yes, managed that! Will post a few photos soon.
I was going to resume blogging actively in a week or two, but couldn't resist this one! Don't ask me where I came across this.
There is a detergent powder that sells in Switzerland by the name 'Linux' and is owned by a company called Rosch. There you go, look at this - 10Kg of Linux! hahaha!
So, the first thing that came to my mind is, shouldn't Linux be trademarked to either Linus or IBM or Novell or anyone but a detergent company? So, is it a violation of trademark rights for some washing powder company to use that name?
I did a trademark search on the USPTO website for the term Linux and got 26 matches with two of them matching the whole word Linux.
Look at Trademarks -
(1) 74560867 -
G & S: computer operating system software to facilitate computer use and operation. FIRST USE: 19940802. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19940802
Last listed owner - Linus Torvalds
(2) 75735641
G & S: laundry detergents and laundry bleaches for home use[; all purpose cleaning preparations for home use; general purpose scouring powders; skin soap for personal use; perfume; essential oils for personal use; preparations for personal hygiene and cosmetic purposes, namely, hair shampoo, skin toners, shower gel, skin lotions; hair tonic and toothpaste]
Owner
(REGISTRANT) Rosch (Swiss) AG CORPORATION SWITZERLAND Axensteinstrasse 4 CH-9000 St. Gallen SWITZERLAND
So, there are two trademarks, totally different, associated with the brand 'Linux'. This, I realized, is because trademarks are treated different than patents in that the mark is registered only with a specific type or range of products, and we obviously see that detergents have at least one dissimilarity with operating systems...fair enough? Well, I would agree, as long as the PTO officers are clear on how thick the line is between the various products and services that are being thrown into this earth everyday.......
I was going to resume blogging actively in a week or two, but couldn't resist this one! Don't ask me where I came across this.
There is a detergent powder that sells in Switzerland by the name 'Linux' and is owned by a company called Rosch. There you go, look at this - 10Kg of Linux! hahaha!
So, the first thing that came to my mind is, shouldn't Linux be trademarked to either Linus or IBM or Novell or anyone but a detergent company? So, is it a violation of trademark rights for some washing powder company to use that name?
I did a trademark search on the USPTO website for the term Linux and got 26 matches with two of them matching the whole word Linux.
Look at Trademarks -
(1) 74560867 -
G & S: computer operating system software to facilitate computer use and operation. FIRST USE: 19940802. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 19940802
Last listed owner - Linus Torvalds
(2) 75735641
G & S: laundry detergents and laundry bleaches for home use[; all purpose cleaning preparations for home use; general purpose scouring powders; skin soap for personal use; perfume; essential oils for personal use; preparations for personal hygiene and cosmetic purposes, namely, hair shampoo, skin toners, shower gel, skin lotions; hair tonic and toothpaste]
Owner
(REGISTRANT) Rosch (Swiss) AG CORPORATION SWITZERLAND Axensteinstrasse 4 CH-9000 St. Gallen SWITZERLAND
So, there are two trademarks, totally different, associated with the brand 'Linux'. This, I realized, is because trademarks are treated different than patents in that the mark is registered only with a specific type or range of products, and we obviously see that detergents have at least one dissimilarity with operating systems...fair enough? Well, I would agree, as long as the PTO officers are clear on how thick the line is between the various products and services that are being thrown into this earth everyday.......
Labels: Geeks are sexy
posted by Padmanaban Kumar (Paddu @ Just for Kicks) at 5:19 PM
7 Comments:
Seeing what is happening between Microsoft and Novell, I wouldn't be surprised if Microsoft goes after and buys that detergent company too..:)
-JB
Hehehe...Yeah, I hope they realize this is not part of their high quality corporate strategy or portfolio of products,...or is it?
maybe it is a good idea...
Microsoft Detergents - We dirty your system, but can at least clean your clothes! Trust us!
-JB
hey guys wait a minute..I thought the name of the detergent was Linux, so why the bashing on Microsoft now?
Bcos that's the way they compete. I'm not saying it's wrong, but that's how they do it and they do it best.
However I'd give anything to see the Swiss Microsoft executives use Linux detergents to clean their stuff and say, "At least I could use Linux this way!"
Ok, for the actual technical stuff, are you saying that there could be two products with the same name and both the owners could have that common name trademarked without any violations on intellectual property rights?
yes, as long as they are different types of products. that's a vague line though. For example, when Apple and Cisco fought over the iPhone trademark, it was a valid violation because both were phones or probably some communicating device. But here, Linux OS and Linux detergent don't seem to have a common base class. So I guess they're allowed to be trademarked independently.
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