CNET reports on efforts by Psion Teklogix, a Mississauga-based company, to send out hundreds of cease and desist letters to manufacturers, retailers, bloggers, and journalists to use stop using the term "netbooks."
Canadian Firm Demands Bloggers Stop Using “Netbooks”
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That’ll work.
Good luck with that. On the other hand, no luck on that. I hate patent trolls.
dogger_blue@yahoo.ca
PSION is no patent troll. They legitimately sold products under the ‘netBook’ name around the year 2000. It’s been years though since they’ve been in the marketplace, although they are trying to claim that the trademark has been still in use in some way.
OSC
This is a joke. Why would a company want to remind everyone of their failed products. None of their revenues for the last 4 or 5 years are derived from the patent.
From the way that their products aren’t selling, I am not so sure that this isn’t a patent troll action
Netbooks
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“Save the Netbooks” campaign
http://www.p2pnet.net/story/18573
“Save the Netbooks is a grassroots campaign web site founded to defend the term netbook from impending trademark action by Psion Teklogix,†says the Wikipedia.
“It was established on 17 February 2009, half way through a three month amnesty proposed in a cease and desist letter delivered to ‘literally hundreds’ of users of the term on 23 December 2007,†says the post, going on:
†It features a countdown timer to the end of March 31 2009 deadline specified in the letter, a blog and Twitter and Facebook communities.“
But Save the Netbooks has declared a victory after only 48 hours.
“The goal of the campaign is to keep the term netbook in the public lexicon by raising awareness around the issue in the hope that the threats are withdrawn or the marks are found to be unenforceable, says the Wikipedia, adding:
“On the basis that the petition to cancel filed had little chance of not being successful, the campaign declared victory 48 hours after launching, continuing related efforts to lift the AdWords ban and participate in the following debate.â€
They haven’t used this mark for over 3 years
I hope they haven’t asserted “Netbook” in Canada. They haven’t even used the mark for at least the last three years. Dell is going after them for fraudulently using the mark: http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/247933/dell-accuses-psion-of-fraud-over-netbook-claims.html