HTC is facing new legal issues, but it’s not what you probably expect. The adult media company Vivid Entertainment has served HTC and AT&T with a cease and desist letter, asking them to change the name of the HTC Vivid due to trademark infringement. Vivid Entertainment is claiming the HTC HTC Vivid’s name may cause confusion among consumers who may think that the Android powered smartphone is made by or endorsed by Vivid Entertainment. While we agree that the HTC Vivid name is very close to Vivid Entertainment, we find it hard to believe that anyone would actually think that there is any connection between the phone and adult entertainment.
Trademark law isn’t an exact science, but we have a feeling that Vivid Entertainment will have a tough time proving that HTC’s phone actually infringes on its trademark. The courts take a lot of factors into consideration which typically include: strength of the mark, proximity of the goods, similarity of the marks, evidence of actual confusion, similarity of marketing channels used, degree of caution exercised by the typical purchaser, and the defendant’s intent.
We’re pretty sure that HTC’s going to come out on top in this case, but just for fun, feel free to leave us a few name change suggestions for the HTC Vivid in the comments below. You never know what can happen in our crazy court system.
Source: The Verge
As the author states, in the article, “There will not be any confusion or association with HTC Vivid and the adult entertainment company”. Looks like the entertainment company may get free advertisement with this lawsuit.
I liked the name Holiday more than Vivid.