[kictanet] US Supreme Court asked to nullify the Google trademark

Mon Aug 21 18:16:21 EAT 2017

Victor

Well put brother..

*Ali Hussein*

*Principal*

*Hussein & Associates*

Tel: +254 713 601113

Twitter: @AliHKassim

Skype: abu-jomo

LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim
<http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim>

13th Floor , Delta Towers, Oracle Wing,

Chiromo Road, Westlands,

Nairobi, Kenya.

Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely
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organizations that I work with.

On Mon, Aug 21, 2017 at 6:11 PM, Victor Kapiyo via kictanet <
kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

> We have had almost similar scenarios in Kenya. You will remember brands
> like "OMO" which became the common name for powdered soap; "BLUEBAND" for
> magarines; "KIMBO" for cooking fat; "QUENCHER" for juices; "NISSAN" for all
> 11-14 seater vans/matatus; "PAMPERS" for diapers; "COLGATE" for toothpaste;
> "PANGA" for bar soap and the list goes on. Just because a trade mark (and
> we must distinguish this from copyright) has become the common name for a
> product or service for which it is registered, doesn't mean it will lose
> the protection. However, the protection will only available to the owner of
> the mark so long as they have taken sufficient measures to protect it.
>
> Because otherwise, of what use is trademark protection if the owners can't
> benefit from the publicity and notoriety their product has received and
> profit from it!
>
> *Victor Kapiyo*
> Partner | *Lawmark Partners LLP*
> Advocate of the High Court of Kenya & Commissioner for Oaths
> *Suite No. 8, Centro House, Westlands, Nairobi | **Web: www.lawmark.co.ke
> <http://www.lawmark.co.ke> *
> ====================================================
>
> *“Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude” Zig
> Ziglar*
>
> On 21 August 2017 at 17:49, Ngigi Waithaka via kictanet <
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>
>> The moment your copyright becomes a verb in English, you've lost half the
>> battle to holding onto it.
>>
>> Today its very normal to just say I *googled*  as opposed to "...I
>> searched for it on Google..."
>>
>> And I am sure you wouldn't want everyone saying googled/google it etc
>> being sued for Copyright infringement, right?
>>
>> Regards
>>
>> On Mon, Aug 21, 2017 at 4:29 PM, Ahmed Mohamed Maawy via kictanet <
>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>
>>> I think its quite unfair to have a company like Google who have built a
>>> brand name that went all the way to be "generisized" to actually not be
>>> given the right to trademark. So what implications does it have then to
>>> their company? I mean.. you can't just say someone set up a company and
>>> called it "Sufuria".
>>>
>>> Plus also Google is not just search but a varierty of products. All
>>> unrelated to Search. But the implications of this are even further than
>>> this. Does it mean that when you open DuckDuckGo or MSN search youd end up
>>> seeing "DuckDuckGo Google" or "MSN Google"?
>>>
>>> To make matters worse lets not even think about Google to begin with and
>>> start thinking about what people will say about "Alphabet"... :D
>>>
>>>
>>> On Mon, Aug 21, 2017 at 3:45 PM, Ali Hussein via kictanet <
>>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Listers
>>>>
>>>> Interesting development.
>>>>
>>>> Is the term "google" too generic and therefore unworthy of its
>>>> trademark protection? That's the question before the US Supreme Court.
>>>>
>>>> Words like teleprompter, thermos, hoover, aspirin, and videotape were
>>>> once trademarked. They lost the status after their names became too generic
>>>> and fell victim to what is known as "genericide."
>>>>
>>>> What's before the Supreme Court is a trademark lawsuit that Google
>>>> already defeated in a lower court. The lawsuit claims that Google should no
>>>> longer be trademarked because the word "google" is synonymous to the public
>>>> with the term "search the Internet."
>>>>
>>>> US Supreme Court asked to nullify the Google trademark
>>>> <https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017/08/supreme-court-asked-to-nullify-the-google-trademark/>
>>>>
>>>> What are the implications in the Kenyan context?
>>>>
>>>> Have you heard guys using Airtel Money saying 'Mpesa me please?' :-)
>>>>
>>>> Should governments even think about this? It's ludicrous that we are
>>>> even discussing this.. :-)
>>>>
>>>> *Ali Hussein*
>>>>
>>>> *Principal*
>>>>
>>>> *Hussein & Associates*
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Tel: +254 713 601113
>>>>
>>>> Twitter: @AliHKassim
>>>>
>>>> Skype: abu-jomo
>>>>
>>>> LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim
>>>> <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> 13th Floor , Delta Towers, Oracle Wing,
>>>>
>>>> Chiromo Road, Westlands,
>>>>
>>>> Nairobi, Kenya.
>>>>
>>>> Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely
>>>> mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the
>>>> organizations that I work with.
>>>>
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>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> *Ahmed Maawy*
>>> Head of Corporate Products - Al Jazeera Media Network
>>> Skype: ultimateprogramer
>>>
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>>> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
>>> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
>>> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
>>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>>>
>>> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
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>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> *Regards,*
>>
>> *Wait**haka Ngigi*
>> Chief Executive Officer | Alliance Technologies | MCK Nairobi Synod
>> Building
>> T +254 20 525 0750 |Office Mobile: +254 716 201061 | M +254 737 811 000
>> www.at.co.ke
>>
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>> ailman/options/kictanet/vkapiyo%40gmail.com
>>
>> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
>> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
>> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
>> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>>
>> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
>> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
>> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
>> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>>
>>
>
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>
> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>
> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>
>
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