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Python trademark at risk in Europe

pyfound.blogspot.ca

101–110 of 168 posts

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#101

Why would an obscure IT company want the name Python ? Aren't they guaranteeing nobody will ever be able to locate them with a google search for example ?

Excellent point. I was searching just today for a good handout or resource for statistics students on how to organise numerical information into tables (the kind you make in word processors). I kept getting references to database design/programming. The old meaning of 'table' is shadowed in Google by the computer science meaning.

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#102

Why would an obscure IT company want the name Python ? Aren't they guaranteeing nobody will ever be able to locate them with a google search for example ?

They're hoping to cash out in lawsuits.

psf ain't rich. UK courts don't like gold diggers especially. Could end badly for python-as-cloud-storage-company

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#103

It's sort of ironic and myopic for this little service to want to infringe or start an issue with the Python, or even the programming community at large. They do cloud hosting? So then I imagine a good portion of their business deals with developers? That's a pretty good tact, I wonder how that will work out for them. I wonder if they think they will get good publicity out of this.

I just emailed them directly along the same lines. Not a flame, just a reasonable message with a link to this thread and a comment about possible negative public relations fallout.

I've also suggested this as a story for The Register. Should generate more evidence and a good head of righteous indignation.

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#104

If they mess with Python, anonymous should rape them.

Since their business all revolves around data, Anons shouldn't have too much trouble destructing their business to pieces.

I think we should use legal remedies here. Mob rule is not an appropriate way of resolving this, and I suspect that once the company realises how unpopular (radioactive?) this will be in PR terms they will reconsider. Also, EU trademark courts are sensibleish

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#105
post #2

I (and probably several other) members of the board will be on this thread to answer any questions. Van Lindberg Chairman, Python Software Foundation Edit: I have been asked what sort of statements would be helpful. I can't tell you exactly what to say - it needs to be your statement, but we need to make it clear that when someone says "Python" in relation to software, or a "Python server," or with "Python experience…

Canonical is based in London UK. Ubuntu makes extensive use of python scripting (I believe Shuttleworth used Python for his original Thawte software). Perhaps they would be prepared to provide evidence statements if approached?

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#107
What about people would start using original and easy to Google names for languages and APIs / frameworks / etc.? (I know Python predates Google but still).

No more three-letters acronyms: PHP, APL, RPG, PL/I (ok, there a slash in addition to the three-letters but still).

No more names that refer to someone who existed (either first name or last name or surname) or a common word: Pascal, Logo, Java, Go, Racket, Haskell... Pffft!

Geez. You have to wonder how the people smart enough to write a language gaining sufficient traction can be so stupid at naming the language.

Here, let's look at a car: oh, "Muffler". Now that's a great name for a programming language. Wait. "Horn" is good too. Common, let's name it "Wheel". Wait, no: "Steering". I'm so smart.

Or let's go to the zoo and pick an animal?

Or... You know what, use Google and try to find a name which isn't commonly used and which hence hasn't much chance of being widely used.

And then it becomes your brand and trademark and intellectual property and what-not-I-am-not-lawyer-but-you-can-nitpick.

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#108
>They blew us off and responded by filing the community trademark application claiming the exclusive right to use "Python" for software, servers, and web services - everywhere in Europe. //

I'm not a TM lawyer by a long shot but this looks like a knee-jerk response to an entirely frivolous claim.

Python lacks distinctiveness in the category covering software because it describes a long standing computer language and is moreover already associated with other companies, such as PSF. OHIM or whoever is assessing the application have to refuse the grant on this basis otherwise there would be a severe curtailment to the ability for practitioners in the field to describe basic and essential tools without confusion.

To grant such a term as a trademark, an indicator that goods and services carrying the mark "python" originate with Veber/Pobox, would be an absolute travesty akin to granting someone a mark for Jeans or Denim in the relevant categories for clothing.

It worries me slightly to see that this appeal has been made because it suggests a deficiency in legal counsel; unless the intention is to counter-sue.

Trademark primacy can be established by long term use but holding a domain name with a mark in [particularly one like Python that is established as a {non-registered?} trade mark already, eg of PSF] doesn't demonstrate use of a trade mark for trade. Moreover as I understand the TM law in the UK/EC it should [according to statute] be impossible for anyone to register a trade mark from under you, that is you would still be able to continue your prior usage of the term. In this respect a RTM is somewhat like a patent, you can't prevent someone from continuing in their prior [public] usage. As a quibble grant of a registered trademark doesn't necessarily give exclusive rights for this very reason.

On a side note, it seems they are also only applying for an image mark? That would make the claim that they're trying to prevent your use of the term Python wrong, they can only prevent you using their image or one confusingly like it as I understand it.

FWIW the earliest CTM relevant Vienna class 9 application I could find was from an individual in Germany from 2002 (002567972) and that the use was for something to do with automobile tuning (see eg http://www.offroad-forum.de/viewtopic.php?t=11763&start=...). PSF have an established use before that.

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#109
There's at least a 1995 European patent application and ~500 others [listed on Google patents for Europe] up to 2009 mentioning python programming language.

In 2009 there's EP2109040A2 which demonstrates a European usage of python by a skilled practitioner in the art specifically to designate the language stewarded by PSF .

Re: Python trademark at risk in Europe

#110
post #34

This is mostly OT, but when browsing python.org for listed corporate sponsors, I noticed that some characters like ä or é are rendered as diamonds. This is because the page charset is utf-8, but the mentioned characters are encoded in iso-8859-1. http://python.org/psf/donations/ Yeah, minor as can be, but IMO when someone donates they should've have spelled their name right. I'm reporting this here because someone wh…

>PS. IMO there is not much reason to worry. Python has so many friends. Google should buy the company and close it.

I think they should go to court. I somehow miss the SCO guy and his suitcase.

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