"We are still working with the courts and trademark office to ensure our ability to use the Gmail name, but this could take years to resolve," the representative said. "And in the meantime, we want our users to have an e-mail address and experience they can rely on. We also want to relieve both Google and our users of the distraction of the dispute."
While all previous Gmail accounts will remain valid, new U.K. users signing up for Google's e-mail service will be given accounts ending in @googlemail.com, rather than @gmail.com.
IIIR registered the trademark Gmail in the time between Google's Web-based e-mail launch and attempt to trademark the Gmail name.
Google said IIIR "contacted us in June 2004 and claimed rights to 'Gmail' and sought a 'business solution;' in other words, they wanted money." Although no official figure has been put on IIIR's request, Google's representative described the sum as "exorbitant."
In a recent report from IIIR on the name dispute, however, the company said it "considers the proposals it made to Google for settlement of this matter to be fair and reasonable to both parties." In a valuation of the Gmail trademark conducted in a draft discussion document in December 2004, IIIR set the brand's worth at between $44 million and $60 million (25 million pounds and 34 million pounds) although the company later said it would settle for a considerably lower sum.
Google and IIIR entered into negotiations, which soured after IIIR CEO Shane Smith broke the pair's agreement to keep discussions confidential. Google then started its own talks with the press, prompting Smith to provide more details about the ongoing negotiations.
I hate bogus junk like that. Opportunistic jerks looking to make a quick buck.
When we took TVNet.com from a hobby site to a start-up, we relaunched as UTV: The Ultimate Television Network. Not too long after, we get a letter from a lawyer telling us that UTV was an internal term used by a televion group and that they didn't want us using it.
We even had the term researched before we launched and our lawyers cleared the name as available. To strengthen their case, the television group even created logo and started using the name externally.
So we shortened it to to UltimateTV, which I thought was a cooler name anyhow. (So cool that Microsoft later purchased the name, leaving the company with the dreadful "Zap2It" name. Of course, Microsoft later abandoned the project, the name dying with it. D'oh.)
When I started my software company within six months I had my first cease-and-desist letter. Since the company was Novell and the program they were referring to was minor I gave up without any fight.
I hate bogus junk like that. Opportunistic jerks looking to make a quick buck.
When we took TVNet.com from a hobby site to a start-up, we relaunched as UTV: The Ultimate Television Network. Not too long after, we get a letter from a lawyer telling us that UTV was an internal term used by a televion group and that they didn't want us using it.
We even had the term researched before we launched and our lawyers cleared the name as available. To strengthen their case, the television group even created logo and started using the name externally.
So we shortened it to to UltimateTV, which I thought was a cooler name anyhow. (So cool that Microsoft later purchased the name, leaving the company with the dreadful "Zap2It" name. Of course, Microsoft later abandoned the project, the name dying with it. D'oh.)
When I started my software company within six months I had my first cease-and-desist letter. Since the company was Novell and the program they were referring to was minor I gave up without any fight.
Tommy Jordan, the man who shot his daughter's laptop for YouTube, gets a visit from police and child protection services. Oh, and Good Morning America.
European Union grants unconditional approval for $12.5 billion deal, but says it will monitor Google's and rival's use of patents to make sure that the deal complies with antitrust rules.
The Samsung Galaxy Mini 2 S6500 could make its debut at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona later this month, according to a leaked promotional image.
We've got an itch to touch us some Super Stars and get all Mario on some poor unfortunate bitmappy baddies. Looks like Converse is set to hand us just the footwear for the job.
When we took TVNet.com from a hobby site to a start-up, we relaunched as UTV: The Ultimate Television Network. Not too long after, we get a letter from a lawyer telling us that UTV was an internal term used by a televion group and that they didn't want us using it.
We even had the term researched before we launched and our lawyers cleared the name as available. To strengthen their case, the television group even created logo and started using the name externally.
So we shortened it to to UltimateTV, which I thought was a cooler name anyhow. (So cool that Microsoft later purchased the name, leaving the company with the dreadful "Zap2It" name. Of course, Microsoft later abandoned the project, the name dying with it. D'oh.)
But all this to say that other company is lame.
When we took TVNet.com from a hobby site to a start-up, we relaunched as UTV: The Ultimate Television Network. Not too long after, we get a letter from a lawyer telling us that UTV was an internal term used by a televion group and that they didn't want us using it.
We even had the term researched before we launched and our lawyers cleared the name as available. To strengthen their case, the television group even created logo and started using the name externally.
So we shortened it to to UltimateTV, which I thought was a cooler name anyhow. (So cool that Microsoft later purchased the name, leaving the company with the dreadful "Zap2It" name. Of course, Microsoft later abandoned the project, the name dying with it. D'oh.)
But all this to say that other company is lame.