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Windows Vista Faces Lawsuits
WindozeSux writes "When tech company Vista discovered the title for the new Windows Operating System version, company founder John Wall was not amused. John Wall may take this to court because he knows of how protective Microsoft is over their trademarks. From the article: 'A Microsoft spokesman said the company chose Vista from a list developed by the Windows team, based on attributes of the new software. Among its primary selling points are new tools for searching and viewing the contents of a PC; communications features; and a lighter desktop appearance with transparent objects.'"
Among its primary selling points are new tools for searching and viewing the contents of a PC; communications features; and a lighter desktop appearance with transparent objects.
Why did they not just call it "Mac OS X" then? Vista... geesh.
Turnabout == fair play.
</optimistic>
Does anyone think this will stop Microsoft from pulling similar stunts?
*earth oscillates from the force of millions of Slashdotters' heads shaking*
The difference between spam and poop is that you don't have to dig through septic tanks looking for real food. -- Me
Sue for the name, or be sued I guess. Sounds like they have a case for the trademark being theirs as a name, but these cases always seem silly to me. Clearly "Windows Vista" is not the same as "Vista" the software company. It's doubtful anyone is going to confuse them.
On the other hand, you damn well bet if I happened to own a company by the name of the up-and-coming Windows OS, I would be making sure my name was EVERYWHERE right about the time the new OS came out. Hell, I'd even offer to sell them the name for $500 million or something, make it worth my time.
MS deserves to be sued for picking such an un-attractive name for an OS. :P
Windows 2000? Yeah, that works. XP? Sure. ME? Not great, but it is better than "Vista". How many people are going to actually know what "Vista" means, anyway? I'd put 20 on people thinking that the newest incarnation of Windows is some spanish distribution.
"Better to be vulgar than non-existent" -Bev Henson
Windows XP Service Pack 3
Have you forgotten Microsloth applied for TM on the entire dictionary in 1992? http://www.microsoft.com/library/toolbar/3.0/trade marks/en-us.mspx
I am still trying to figure out why apple is letting tigerdirect make its operating system. :(
The poster's nickname kind of kills the objectivity on this one.
I still think Microsoft should pay up for their mistake, but when someone with this kind of nickname posts about microsoft, its bound not to sound objective or credible.
I find the name Vista to be very appropriate. I propose that on every new install, an image of the Terminator pops up, saying "Hasta la vista, baby!!!"
"If they called it Windows Garbage, would people still buy it? Yeah, they'd buy it," said David Burd, [. . .] "They've got something like 90 percent penetration in the world of operating systems."
Uh, wouldn't "Windows Hegemony" have been a better choice?
"The television is the retina of the mind's eye" - Videodrome
When my company wants to propose a name a new product, one of the steps is to go to the USPTO to see if somebody in the same industry has a registered trademark on it. If so, we drop the proposed name and go on to the next. Seems elementary to me. We also try to get the .com domain if at all possible. Lastly, we do a google search to see if the name candidate is diluted or already in use as a claimed (but not registered) trademark. Sometimes we find that the name has negative connotations. Anyway, why doesn't MS hire people who do these elementary steps for them?
Perhaps they felt that "vista" was too diluted to be a trademark on its own, and/or that using the trademark "Microsoft Vista" is sufficiently distinct from any other use of "vista", but these arguments seem lazy and weak to me.
Other than that, it's a pretty good name.
Somehow I doubt that the "MS Team" (by this I'm assuming mainly software engineers, etc) would be entrusted with the name for a flagship product. Codename perhaps, but I'll bet that a name as meaningless-yet-initially-resistant-to-punnery (just look at how Apple treated the Longhorn code name) like Vista would be coined by an amalgam of dozens of vacuous marketing executives.
Though really I'm just surprised they didnt do a google search of the name to see if there's any similar companies or products out there called Vista...
Yup...
Right now, the name can be changed without Microsoft caring too much. If it gets to release time, there is no way in hell Microsoft will change the name. They'll just throw lawyers at him until he gives in. If it doesn't work in the USA, they'll harass him in other countries.
Right now, he's got a clear advantage. If he makes every move to completely stop their use of the mark 'Vista' (as opposed to licensing it to them or something), then they'll probably change the name sharpish. But if he shows any sign of weakness, they'll just steamroller him into submission.
Perhaps Garmin, which makes the Vista GPS, should also sue. After all, that whole "Where do you want to go today?" slogan of MS's could also apply to a GPS.
Why don't they just go back to naming it after the release year, and avoid all the legal problems?
After all, Windows 2017 has a nice ring to it...
I say Microsoft should continue with the emoticon tradition started with XP and go for like =( or 8| or something...
Seems that M$ can't keep from trotting on Linux companies. First Lindows get bought off my M$ for the name, but this time they have chosen a name similar to an existing Linux company MontaVista?
I can see it now "Was that Windows Vista (tm) were were supposed to buy, or MontaVista (www.mvista.com) Linux?" I'm so confused...
It only gets worse once M$ Windows Vista goes embedded considering MontaVista is the #1 embedded Linux vendor on the planet
1. aquire trademark for a word.
2. ???
3. wait for a big company to use the same word.
4. sue their ass.
5. profit!!!
What goes around comes around, kid.
Why all the people saying microsoft should have googled for the name first? Obviosuly, microsoft would have used the msn search. Perhaps that explains why they didn't realize that the name is already taken.
what http://vistawindows.com/ is gonna do.
I was hoping that Vista Windows would sue them, but this is even better. Not that I like these stupid corporate legal battles but anything that may force them to change the name is great in my book!
Heck, why call it Windows Vista, when Windows Fiesta! sounds even worse?
DMCA, Hollings, Palladium. What might have sounded like paranoia is now common sense.
Clearly "Windows Vista" is not the same as "Vista" the software company. It's doubtful anyone is going to confuse them.
How often do people drop the term "Windows". I mean, it's called 95, 98, ME, XP, NT, so why do you think it will not be called simply "Vista". Microsoft can't change the name (Well, they could, but it's unlikely because there's a huge marketing machine in place). They could, of course, could drag it through the courts, but that would be unwise PR-wise (Cue up the "Microsoft steamrolls over another small company" propoganda). So they will load up a truckfull of cash and buy the name from the guy.
"I'm not impatient. I just hate waiting." - My Dad
Naming is important, but unfortunately that anecdote is untrue.
English is easier said than done.
Wall was one of the early inverstors in the Caldera/SCO scam.
The company also owns some dubious energy company (most likely a tax-writeoff stunt).
MS knew must have known about Vista, and this might poosibly be a somewhat indirect way of funelling money to further finance the SCO litigation machine.
If you put on your tinfoil hat, this name is not an accident, but a way to finance SCO without alerting the antitrust watch dogs.
-- Another senseless waste of fine bytes.
Stop spreading bullshit
"it's bad enough that microsoft takes 5 years to release beta software that's probably going to be 50% capable of mimicing os x."
Actually, even Windows XP is already 100% capable of "mimicking" Tiger: desktop search, graphical scripting, widgets, RSS, AV chat, etc., it's all there as add-ons, from multiple sources.
The only thing Apple is doing differently is that they are bundling all this stuff with their OS.
How did someone let them register _windows_ then. Afetr all, it's a common word.
Word History: The source of our word window is a vivid metaphor. Window comes to us from the Scandinavian invaders and settlers of England in the early Middle Ages. Although we have no record of the exact word they gave us, it was related to Old Norse vindauga, "window," a compound made up of vindr, "wind," and auga, "eye," reflecting the fact that at one time windows contained no glass. The metaphor "wind eye" is of a type beloved by Norse and Old English poets and is called a kenning; other examples include oar-steed for "ship" and whale-road for "sea." Recently we have restored to the 800-year-old word window a touch of its poetic heritage, using it figuratively in such phrases as launch window, weather window, and window of opportunity or vulnerability.
I gave up with the idea of an useful sig...
You'd still see press saying John Wall was not amused...
This issue is a bit more complicated than you think.
While the threat of a lawsuit from MS is certainly enough to keep one up at night (and personally I don't think they'd try to sue Vista since they held their name first)... this is great publicity for vista.com.
No one heard of them, and now millions of people might accidentially come across their website or read about them in regards to this potential lawsuit.
Besides, they don't appear to be a software company -- from the looks of their website, they do website hosting and design, ecommerce.
-David
Step 1: go to http://vista.com/page/5rr/About_Us.html
Step 2: click on the mailto: bizdev@vista.com
Step 3: ask where the link is to download Windows Vista
Step 4: Profit for Vista, as they'll have prime evidence of market confusion
__ Someday, but not this morning, I'll finally learn to use the preview button.
...the only OS you can jump off of.
Or enforce some truth in advertising laws.
Make them call it Microsoft Bloated Buggy Pile Of Evil And Mind Crushing Pig Shit That Makes Baby Jesus Cry
Sorry. Had to get that off my chest. Just mod me down. Thank you and good night.
i found an interesting article on john wall and vista and his product:
http://www.threenorth.com/sco/john_wall.html
23 April 2005
It seems that John Wall is selling Vista.com. Well, sort of selling it
after reading that, i don't feel sorry for this john wall guy at all.
many of you may be microsoft bashers, and maybe rightfully so. but to be illogical and say john wall deserves this payment just because you dislike microsoft is just wrong.
if microsoft was wrong, i'd say they are. but this case is pretty clear that vista does not deserve a single penny.
HD Trailers
Vista and SCO are connected somehow because SCO has given over a million dollars to Vista through various deals. It doesn't seem that SCO got anything in return.
Now Microsoft and Vista are connected. It's a weird coincidence.
Stats_for_all talks about the Vista SCO connection on the yahoo SCOX board.
It seems that there are a lot of puzzling things about Vista as a company.
... because, whether you like it or not, you're likely to say, "Wow, look at that."
-- I prefer the term "karma escort."
And a slogan with that cloyingly trendy "so" thrown in.
"You are so going to love this version!"
"Where do you so want to go today?"
"You so won't see the blue screen anymore."
--Rick "If it isn't broken, take it apart and find out why."
They should call it "Quits".
^=====^
By the taping of my glasses, something geeky this way passes
Yes: Hasta la Vista, Windows
Remember wxWindows, excellent library (better than QT IMHO)? It existed for a very long time, but Microsoft recently forced them to rename to wxWidgets.
Could it be that Microsoft is well aware of the name conflict, and selects a temporary name they know would get this kind of attention.
That way they get lots of free press telling the world that they are about to release a new OS, and at the same time they try to wash out common nicknames names like Longwait, and NoHorn from peoples minds.
When the OS is released it will be named to something completely different.
God is REAL! Unless explicitly declared INTEGER
I happen to work for a software company with Vista in the name... 'Vista Entertainment Solutions' and our product is marketed as 'Vista'. It has been since 1995.
http://www.vista.co.nz/
I'm not sure as to the extent this will affect us.