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Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

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Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#131

Post by lazulicurio »

ghaff wrote: post #129
yndoendo wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This simple change in the USA legal system would benefit a lot of people. Prevent frivolous lawsuits. Allow the poor to sue when they do have a case but no money to fallow through. and help end SLAPP. Just another example where the USA needs improvement and is not the best in the world.

>Allow the poor to sue when they do have a case but no money to fallow through. The issue is that lawsuits are often not obvious. There's almost always a non-trivial risk of losing. Therefore, in a universal "loser pays" system, it's even riskier for a poor (or even middle-class) person to sue a company given that they could be responsible for bankruptcy-level legal fees if they lose.

> Therefore, in a universal "loser pays" system, it's even riskier for a poor (or even middle-class) person to sue a company given that they could be responsible for bankruptcy-level legal fees if they lose.

The simple[1] solution to that would be “loser pays if they spent more”. Which might seem odd at first glance (why punish the loser even more?), but would align the incentives in the right direction.

[1] Read: I haven't put much thought into ways this could be abused

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#132

Post by jmull »

I hope this guy is getting good legal advice. He seems focused on things that aren’t that central to his case, like whether words or word-parts are dictionary words, or whether Google had complained about the name in the past (how could Google object to a trademark that hadn’t been filed for?)

I have no idea of the specific laws and regulations in effect in this case, but generally an infringement case like this is about whether the defendant’s mark is likely to cause confusion in consumers. My opinion in this case is “no”, but it’s arguable and for whatever reason Google wants to argue it.

I also wonder if there is much to win here. How much does the guy have invested in that name and how much future value does it have over alternatives? It might be less than the risk of legal costs. I don’t see a compelling general principle here that is bigger than the case itself either.

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#133

Post by unishark »

jackcviers3 wrote: post #78
xmprt wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Trademarks are about customer protection more than protecting the company. If another company starts selling "Android" phones that have a completely different OS, that ruins the Android brand but also makes it difficult for customers to trust that the product they're buying is legitimate unless the Android trademark is defended.

Using this the next time an objectivist capitalist starts getting angry about how government regulations are all worthless.

Trademark infringement can be viewed as fraud and a criminal matter with an actual victim (the person scammed into buying the fake Android phone).

Patents are a different story, since the idea itself is the value, and different people can come up with the same idea independently.

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#134

Post by LoSboccacc »

nix23 wrote: post #113
rozab wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Trademark law and copyright law are completely different. Stop talking about copyright.

Then Android has nothing todo with droid because it's a different word and has nothing todo with Android right? Or do you want to sue everyone that has Andr (Man) in his name?

ugh

1) trademark don't cover just exact matches

2) trademarks are in their own classes, you can't litigate across classes

3) common words are perfectly fine as trademarks, as long as commonly associated with a product

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#135

Post by pyuser583 »

yndoendo wrote: post #124
kwanbix wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is because in USA you pay your lawyers. In other countries, if you loose, you have to pay the lawyers of the other part.

This simple change in the USA legal system would benefit a lot of people. Prevent frivolous lawsuits. Allow the poor to sue when they do have a case but no money to fallow through. and help end SLAPP. Just another example where the USA needs improvement and is not the best in the world.

In the UK, litigants usually take out an insurance policy. So at the end of the day, the insurer pays if the plaintiff loses.

I don’t know if that’s good or bad. It gives an insurance company a very large say in matters of justice.

But insurance is one of the wonders of the modern world.

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#136

Post by jrochkind1 »

yndoendo wrote: post #124
kwanbix wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is because in USA you pay your lawyers. In other countries, if you loose, you have to pay the lawyers of the other part.

This simple change in the USA legal system would benefit a lot of people. Prevent frivolous lawsuits. Allow the poor to sue when they do have a case but no money to fallow through. and help end SLAPP. Just another example where the USA needs improvement and is not the best in the world.

> Allow the poor to sue when they do have a case but no money to fallow through

I think it would do the reverse. Even if you and your lawyers think you have a good case, there is no guarantee that you will win. If you sue and lose, you have to pay for the other guy's legal fees? Poor people would never be able to risk it.

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#137

Post by CPLX »

yndoendo wrote: post #124
kwanbix wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is because in USA you pay your lawyers. In other countries, if you loose, you have to pay the lawyers of the other part.

This simple change in the USA legal system would benefit a lot of people. Prevent frivolous lawsuits. Allow the poor to sue when they do have a case but no money to fallow through. and help end SLAPP. Just another example where the USA needs improvement and is not the best in the world.

Absolutely not. The current system gives both parties a powerful incentive to settle the case, or not go to court at all. Which on a broad scale is definitely what you want.

It also creates specific problems, and a big one is that it can make it hard for normal people to hold large companies accountable for bad behavior when not a ton of money is at stake in each individual case. But that’s probably best addressed by other means.

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#138

Post by acomjean »

ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #54
MacsHeadroom wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apples predate civilization, yet Apple does have the exclusive privilege of using the word Apple in relation to computers and almost anything that touches a computer. So that's not a great argument. Google does not have a trademark on Droid, however. It doesn't actually matter though, because civil litigation is a war of attrition. They don't have to be right. They just have to have deeper pockets. If you think this…

Apple had to make a deal with Apple Records (the Beatles’ company): https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Corps_v_Apple_Computer

This is actually quite interesting and relevant. Initially Apple could keep the name (after settling) because Computers aren’t involved in music (the Apple // could click the speaker and it took some assembly to make it click and make tones, no sound chip)

Fast forward to iTunes and they’re in the same market.

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#139

Post by SpelingBeeChamp »

ghaff wrote: post #123
kwanbix wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is because in USA you pay your lawyers. In other countries, if you loose, you have to pay the lawyers of the other part.

I doubt that is universally true. In the US, a court can award court costs and legal fees to the winning party but they're unlikely to do so unless the case is clearly frivolous and harassing. Which isn't unreasonable because otherwise individuals could basically never afford to take on the risk of suing a company because, were they to lose, they'd be on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_rule_(attorney%27s_fe...

Re: Google sues me for using the word “droid” in my company name Orpheusdroid

#140

Post by SpelingBeeChamp »

willmacdonald wrote: post #15

Apple would not let me register a developer account using my domain name macscan.net. Got a letter from their legal team. This was not for any product or app I was even thinking of making. This was purely: 'You cannot use that email address'.

Your example is not analogous to the OP. You were trying to get Apple to allow you to do something within their own product, not trying to start a business and then having another business say you can't name it something.

Apple doesn't have to let anyone register a developer account. They don't need a reason if they decide to reject certain account names.

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