BlackBerry Trumps BlackJack!
Posted by Doug Smith on 02/8/07 in Pocket PC Phones, Smart Phones
BlackBerry (RIMM) today has announced that it has reached a settlement with Samsung in a trademark infringement lawsuit revolving around the new "BlackJack" phone. Even though the agreement, or how deep this will get into Samsung’s pockets, is confidential, what was disclosed is that Samsung will 
have to change the BlackJack trademark to "Blackjack" using a lower case "j". Part of the argument BlackBerry made was that Samsung had used a different name in Europe and used BlackJack here in the United States. Did win them any brownie points in the case for sure. Look for the title to change in the near future. I wonder if the old devices on the market will be worth more as a collectors item? :)
Source: CNN Money.com via engadgetmobile.com
For the full CNN Money story, click below:
NEW YORK (AP)–BlackBerry maker
A spokesman for Samsung at the South Korean company’s U.S. headquarters in
RIM’s statement - which misspelled the BlackJack name with a lower case "j" - said the settlement "does include limitations on use of the Blackjack trademark, withdrawal of the trademark application for Blackjack, Cingular’s retention of common law rights in the Blackjack trademark, and certain reasonable measures to avoid confusion in the marketplace."
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for Central California, had alleged unfair competition and trademark dilution by Samsung in using the name BlackJack in connection with a handheld device that, like the BlackBerry, features a full keyboard for thumb typing email.
The BlackJack was introduced in November in the U.S. by
Samsung introduced a very similar device to the BlackJack earlier in 2006 in Britain through
In its lawsuit, RIM suggested it was no accident that Samsung used a different name overseas, where BlackBerry is less popular, and then chose the BlackJack name for the market where BlackBerry is best known. RIM’s lawsuit also suggested that Samsung chose the BlackJack to take advantage of the recent launch a BlackBerry device called the Pearl that is similarly small and also black in color.
Written by Doug Smith · Filed Under Pocket PC Phones, Smart Phones
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