In a case that could have forced Linux vendor Lindows to change its business name worldwide, a Netherlands court ruled this week that Lindows' current limited use of the Lindows name does not violate Microsoft's Windows trademark. After it lost an earlier case in the same Amsterdam court over the use of the Lindows name, Lindows changed the name of its operating system product and corresponding Web site to Linspire. However, it kept Lindows as its company name.
Microsoft sued Lindows again, charging that use of Lindows as its company name also constitutes an infringement on its Windows trademark. The Amsterdam District Court disagrees. "Not every use of the business name Lindows infringes on the Windows trademark," Judge Sj. A. Rullmann says in her ruling. Lindows currently uses the Lindows name only in the small print on its Web site and product documentation and clearly states that it is not affiliated with Microsoft. That use is not in violation of the court's January ruling that barred Lindows from using the name to sell its version of the Linux operating system, according to the court.
News source: PCWorld.com
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