RIM Sues Samsung over BlackJack Phone Name
Research in Motion (RIM) has sued Samsung Telecommunications America, claiming that Samsung's BlackJack smart phone violates the BlackBerry trademark.
Here is what the heavily advertised BlackJack looks like:
RIM is asking that Samsung be stopped from selling the BlackJack and Black Carbon mobile phones and is seeking unspecified damages, according to court filings. The lawsuit was filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
"Samsung is misleading the public into falsely believing that Samsung's goods and services are connected with RIM's business," the filing states.
The $450 BlackJack phone was introduced last month to the U.S. market, where it is sold exclusively by Cingular Wireless.
A Samsung spokesman declined to comment on the matter to our colleague Bob McMillan of IDG News Service. "Samsung is not going to comment on pending litigation," he said.
Black Carbon is an ultra-thin phone sold directly by Samsung. Here's what it looks like:
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This is absurd. So RIM has rights to the word 'black' now? What else could they be saying? RIM is just afraid because their business' future is looking bleak. When a business is governed by fear it will fail.
The fact that the advertisements, not to mention the phone, has "SAMSUNG" in BIG BOLD LETTERS should be a clue that this is not a BlackBerry. See also: screenshots that make it obvious that the BlackJack is running Windows Mobile, not RIM's platform.
When did they start owning the word "Black." I mean what are they thinking, are they stupid to bring this to the court over a DEVICE NAME. WOW, BB needs to rethink over this. When did WINDOWS MOBILE become RIM????? bj is running WINDOWS MOBILE PLATFORM NOT RIM... THERE IS A WHOLE LOT OF DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THAT...
If it was Jack Black suing them, maybe, but I don't think RIM has a case in this one.