Geiggleco Update
A judge has ruled on the Geico/Google search term suit:
Judge Leonie Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia granted Google's motion to dismiss a trademark-infringement complaint brought by Geico. The insurance company had charged Google with violating its trademarks by using the word "Geico" to trigger rival ads in sponsored search results. Geico claimed the practice diluted its trademarks and caused consumer confusion. The judge said that "as a matter of law it is not trademark infringement to use trademarks as keywords to trigger advertising," said Michael Page, a partner at Keker & Van Nest, which represented Google.It isn't that you don't expect a sensible decision, but you always breathe a sigh of relief once it comes.
Comments
Interesting. This is what my company does day in / day out in grocery stores. Buy a 6 pack of Pepsi and our system prints up a coupon for Coke.
There’s 20 years of this happening already so Geico doesn’t stand a chance.
Posted by: Sharp as a Marble - 05:45 PM - 12/15
Agreed. Too often people get so bent out of shape on an issue that affects them that they are blinded to full ramifications of the change they demand. Geico would do better to see how their competitors are using this kind of marketing and start playing the game better.
Posted by: - 09:32 AM - 12/16
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