Court revives Rosetta Stone vs Google
2012-04-09 22:44
Washington- A federal appeals court on Monday revived the bulk of language-software maker Rosetta Stone's trademark infringement suit against Google.
In the suit filed in 2009, Rosetta Stone accused Google of committing trademark infringement by selling the language-software maker's marks to third-party advertisers for use as search keywords.
A Virginia district court had dismissed the case in 2010, finding that sale of the keywords was not likely to create confusion in the minds of consumers over the source of Rosetta Stone's goods.
But the US Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit overturned most of the lower court's ruling, reviving claims that Google committed direct trademark infringement and diluted the Rosetta Stone brand.
The 4th Circuit directed the lower court to reconsider when Google first appeared to dilute the Rosetta Stone trademark, and whether that trademark was "famous" at the time.
The case is Rosetta Stone v Google, US Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, No 10-2007.
