Doesn't the infringement have to be in the same category as the trademark? A dating app seems quite far from games.
Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
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Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#12I prefer it in French version: Sexe Entre Amis
1. It just sounds more sexy. 2. It avoids US Trademark issues. 3. Carlos Danger is an investor.
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#13I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Seriously.
It does seem stupid but they have to. It's like the Bethesda / Mojang trademark battle over "Scrolls". Trademark law, at least in this country, is strict. If you don't go after potential trademark infringements diligently and in a reasonable time period, then you will quickly lose the legal right to do so.
It's comical not just because they're claiming a silly trademark infringement, but because the whole company was built off of copying existing games.
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#14Wow, the creators of BWF must be celebrating tonight. Look at all this free press, now they can say they've been covered by BBC too!
Exactly what I was thinking. They were in the press early on, and had a huge boost in users. Looks like things have been slowly dying since then, down more then 80% since peak. All the coverage should boost them right back, even if they are forced to change their name.
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#15Protecting trademarks is serious business. Remember when Monster Cable sued Monster Mini-golf? Personally, I think Zynga has more important things to worry about, and I get this is a big deal for the startup, but it's just a corporate lawyer doing his job. I'm not saying it's right, but if someone made another, more accurately targeted, ____ With Friends game, they could cite Zynga's inaction with respect to Bang Wit…
Is it OK, if BWF pays a cent in a perpetual royalty? Will Zynga have any obligation to license others the name at the same price?
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#16I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Seriously.
It does seem stupid but they have to. It's like the Bethesda / Mojang trademark battle over "Scrolls". Trademark law, at least in this country, is strict. If you don't go after potential trademark infringements diligently and in a reasonable time period, then you will quickly lose the legal right to do so.
It doesn't really legitimize this suit to compare it with another famously absurd trademark infringement battle. "Scrolls" are a fantasy trope (meaning it's so commonly used that it's considered unimaginative)! You can't have that! I think that "Elder Scrolls" is distinctive and trademark-able. "Scrolls" is not.
Setting aside the issue of whether the phrase "With Friends" is distinctive, and therefore trademarkable, BWF and WWF do not serve remotely similar purposes, so they're not going to lose their right to defend the trademark in their own market.
Finally, their big trademark blunder was using an indefensible trademark. The damage there has already been done. It doesn't make sense to then hurt your brand's reputation by linking it in the minds of your customers with a hookup app. The fact that this story is on the front page of Hacker News means that the Streisand effect is hurting the brand already (not that Zynga has a sterling reputation here). Sometimes it's a tactical error to do what the legal department recommends, and this is one of those cases.
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#17Protecting trademarks is serious business. Remember when Monster Cable sued Monster Mini-golf? Personally, I think Zynga has more important things to worry about, and I get this is a big deal for the startup, but it's just a corporate lawyer doing his job. I'm not saying it's right, but if someone made another, more accurately targeted, ____ With Friends game, they could cite Zynga's inaction with respect to Bang Wit…
Is it OK, if BWF pays a cent in a perpetual royalty? Will Zynga have any obligation to license others the name at the same price?
I don't believe Zynga has any obligation to provide standardized royalty licensing to any particular person or entity.
Whether it's ok or not is entirely up to Zynga and their counsel.
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#18Only Zynga could make this headline believable
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#19[deleted]
Re: Zynga sues sex app maker over Bang With Friends name
#20Protecting trademarks is serious business. Remember when Monster Cable sued Monster Mini-golf? Personally, I think Zynga has more important things to worry about, and I get this is a big deal for the startup, but it's just a corporate lawyer doing his job. I'm not saying it's right, but if someone made another, more accurately targeted, ____ With Friends game, they could cite Zynga's inaction with respect to Bang Wit…
The only entities benefiting from the "protect it or lose it" IP laws are news agencies. It generates all sorts of weird "official business" conflict for them to gleefully report.