Research In Motion is suing Samsung, claiming that the name of the company's new BlackJack smart phone is too similar to that of RIM's own BlackBerry devices.
The suit was filed Friday in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. RIM is seeking an injunction against the sale of the new BlackJack phones. In the complaint, RIM said Samsung's use of the "BlackJack" name "constitutes false designation of origin, unfair competition and trademark dilution."
RIM contends that its BlackBerry devices, used by more than 6 million people around the world to send and receive e-mail, have become iconic in both form and function. The BlackJack, which runs Windows Mobile operating system and has a full QWERTY keyboard, competes directly with many of RIM's devices, including the BlackBerry Pearl, a phone designed to attract consumers rather than RIM's typical business customers. The company says it believes the name BlackJack might confuse some customers.
Samsung launched the BlackJack in early December with a huge marketing campaign; currently, the phone is sold exclusively for Cingular's network. Ironically, the launch coincided with RIM's launch of the BlackBerry Pearl on Cingular's network as well. Until December, T-Mobile had been the exclusive carrier of the Pearl.
A Cingular spokesman said the mobile operator could not comment on the lawsuit, but he said Cingular has no plans to discontinue the sale of Samsung's BlackJack.
RIM declined to comment on the lawsuit. A Samsung representative said the company has not received the complaint and declined to comment.
I agree. BlackJack is a better phone...1.5 hrs. more talk time and video recording. RIM should worry more about being able to file their financials...options back dating???...and the Visto lawsuit they face in '07. As far as their lawsuit against Samsung I guess RIM figures it owns the rights to the word "black". WRONG! Their lawsuit should be thrown out.
At one time I had thought that blackberry(RIM) deserved a break, after all, they were involved in what I thought was a stupid lawsuit. Now I guess I feel that they deserve to get hit with another. A blackberry is juicy and delicious, blackjack is a card game. Are we, the public so stupid as to not know the difference? Or is it that the powers to be at RIM are so stupid as to think the rest of the world is a brain dead as they are? Do the stupid nitwits at RIM really think they own everything beginning with the word black?
I could swear that BlackJack was one of those off brands of gum that has been around forever or at least longer than RIM and possible Samsung as a company.
I could swear that BlackJack was one of those off brands of gum that has been around forever or at least longer than RIM and possible Samsung as a company.
Oh give me a Fraking break! RIM is suing Samsung cause their smartphone is called a Blackjack and RIM makes a Blackberry? Hello? I think after dominating the industry for so long RIM is actually afraid of a little thing called competition!
When someone tells me they have a Blackberry, I know exactly what they are talking about. I don't start saying, "OH you mean that cool new phone from samsung?"
I am really against companies suing for money, patents etc. But, I think RIM actually has a case. Personally I do not like Blackberrys and have a Treo 700p. When a friend told me he had a blackjack (me being more tech savy) I thought it was a Blackberry Pearl with more features to appeal to non-business users. But of course when I was shown the device I quickly knew what it was.
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And let's not forget Black Jack condoms too.
Black Jack was many things.
"Fergie could not be reached for comment!"
You gotta be kidding me. Confuse blackjack with blackberry? So you're not allowed to use the word black when naming a phone product?
Sometimes I wonder...
When someone tells me they have a Blackberry, I know exactly what they are talking about. I don't start saying, "OH you mean that cool new phone from samsung?"
But, likely this lawsuit will succeed in getting Samsung to stop using in the future.
This will be settled.