Geico Takes Aim at Google Google for Selling Ads Linked to Trademarks

Grok Headline matches for Geico Takes Aim at Google Google for Selling Ads Linked to Trademarks

Geico sues Google, Overture over
trademarks

Geico sues Google, Overture over
trademarks 05/18/2004 02:42 PM
The auto insurance company is taking the search engines to court for allegedly violating its trademarks by selling them as keywords in their advertising programs.

Google and Overture Sued by Geico Over
Keyterm Trademarks

Google and Overture Sued by Geico Over
Keyterm Trademarks 05/19/2004 12:15 AM
Search Engine Journal May 19 2004 4:49AM GMT

"GEICO Sues Google and Overture over
Trademarks (via News.com)"

"GEICO Sues Google and Overture over
Trademarks (via News.com)" 05/20/2004 04:11 PM

Google and Geico

Google and Geico 12/17/2004 06:43 PM

Court hears dispute over how Google sells advertising: Wasn't this a big deal a few years ago? I remember Playboy suing over (other) porn sites putting banner ads on search results pages for the keyword "Playboy."

Attorneys for auto insurance giant Geico told U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema that Google should not be allowed to sell ads to rival insurance companies that are triggered when Geico's name is typed into the Google search box.

This bothers me a little bit. Who is another business to come along and tell Google how to run its own? It's not like Google is going this on an existing publicity outlet — Google created this outlet, so no matter what happens, Geico is doing better than it would be without it.

Geico Not Giving Up Against Google

Geico Not Giving Up Against Google 01/03/2005 02:58 PM
Last month, Geico very quickly lost their trademark infringement case against Google, even if the company tried to spin the loss and say it was a victory. Now, Geico is still claiming that they're going to fight on with this case, saying: "We continue to believe that the sale of our trademark is wrong, and we will continue to litigate this issue." The issue, of course, is that Google isn't "selling [their] trademark." They're selling positioning for anyone who is looking for Geico. As we've pointed out plenty of times, that's no different than the process of products being placed on shelves in stores. Stores sell placement all the time, and plenty of companies want to get placed near bigger brand names. The article also goes into some details about the method Geico used to show that there was trademark confusion. This was basically showing users two extreme cases, neither of which they were likely to see in a real-life Google search, and suggesting there was confusion. Part of this "confusion" was that some users in the test would click on an advertisement for other companies offering insurance quotes -- including quotes for Geico. You could easily question whether or not this created real confusion. If you're looking for a Geico quote, and someone offers you the opportunity to get quotes for Geico and others, many people would consciously choose to get the comparison quotes. It's not about confusion, but realizing they have more choice. In other words, Geico's complaint isn't about protecting trademark (which is just designed to prevent confusion over brand), but about preventing competition.

Google Beats the Gecko, I Mean Geico

Google Beats the Gecko, I Mean Geico 12/24/2004 12:46 PM

Google, the search engine company, won a federal court battle against Geico, the insurance company, today that allows the search engine to sell online advertisements tied to keywords that are also trademarked company names. Geico claimed that Google should not be allowed to display advertisements for rival insurance companies when the Geico name is used as a search keyword. U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema disagreed.

Judge: Geico can sue Google, Overture
over ads

Judge: Geico can sue Google, Overture
over ads 09/03/2004 11:44 AM
BOSTON - A federal judge in Virginia has ruled that a trademark infringement suit filed by the Government Employees Insurance Co. (GEICO) against Internet search giants Google Inc. and Overture Services Inc. can proceed.

Geico gets green light to sue Google,
Overture

Geico gets green light to sue Google,
Overture 09/02/2004 05:24 PM
ZDNet Sep 2 2004 9:32PM GMT

GEICO Gets Go-Ahead On Google, Overture
Suit

GEICO Gets Go-Ahead On Google, Overture
Suit 09/03/2004 05:48 PM
ClickZ Today Sep 3 2004 9:22PM GMT

Court Case Pits Google and Geico

Court Case Pits Google and Geico 12/19/2004 03:06 PM
While Google maintains its popularity with us, it has definitely hit a brick wall with car insurance company, Geico. Apparently, Geico is upset about competing insurance companies purchasing ads that happen to be linked to “Geico” and “Geico Direct.” I do understand the concern, but, folks, this is the nature of business. There have been a number of times that I have seen ads related to one company that is competing with the one that… Direct and Related Links for 'Court Case Pits Google and Geico'

Google seeks clarification on trademarks

Google seeks clarification on trademarks 12/08/2003 08:09 AM
Computer Weekly Dec 8 2003 7:06AM ET

Geico Sues Google and Overture For
Trademark Infringement

Geico Sues Google and Overture For
Trademark Infringement 08/02/2004 08:27 PM
BeSpacific Aug 3 2004 0:24AM GMT

Google Wins Geico Adwords Trademark Suit

Google Wins Geico Adwords Trademark Suit 12/19/2004 03:07 PM
Google won a major legal victory Wednesday when a federal judge said the search engine could continue to sell ads triggered by searches using trademarked company names.

Geico sues Google, Overture for
Trademark Violations

Geico sues Google, Overture for
Trademark Violations 05/19/2004 12:15 AM
Search Engine Lowdown May 19 2004 4:28AM GMT

Google Wins Major Legal Victory vs.
Geico

Google Wins Major Legal Victory vs.
Geico 12/19/2004 03:05 PM
Google a major legal victory Wednesday when a federal judge said the search engine could continue to sell ads triggered by searches using trademarked company names.

Google Asks Court for Ruling on
Trademarks

Google Asks Court for Ruling on
Trademarks 12/04/2003 10:45 PM
Yahoo! Dec 4 2003 10:07PM ET

Google asks U.S. court for ruling on
trademarks

Google asks U.S. court for ruling on
trademarks 12/05/2003 11:24 AM
Search Engine Lowdown Dec 5 2003 10:36AM ET

Google seeks ruling on search trademarks

Google seeks ruling on search trademarks 12/05/2003 04:24 AM
ZDNet UK Dec 5 2003 4:08AM ET

Google seeks legal clarification on
trademarks

Google seeks legal clarification on
trademarks 12/07/2003 07:33 PM
Google Inc. has asked a US District Court judge to rule that keyword-based advertisements on the Web search engine do not violate trademark law. ...

Google asks for court's thoughts on
trademarks

Google asks for court's thoughts on
trademarks 12/06/2003 07:55 PM
Moving to stem a growing legal controversy, Google has asked a court to give a green light to the way it sells search-related online advertising, a lucrative ...

Judge Confused Over Meaning Of Trademark
In Geico Case Against Google

Judge Confused Over Meaning Of Trademark
In Geico Case Against Google 09/02/2004 05:50 PM
This isn't a huge surprise, but the Geico lawsuit against Google and Overture for showing competitors' ads on searches including the term "Geico" is been given the green light to move forward, and wasn't simply tossed out. Apparently, the judge believed Geico that this somehow was trademark infringement. Hopefully, Google and Overture can get a good legal strategy together in time for the actual case. It's been said many times before, but this is not trademark infringement, it's advertising. The point of trademark is to protect your brand against being hijacked by someone else pretending to be you. It's to avoid consumer confusion. It's not, like a patent, designed to keep everyone completely away. As long as the ads in question don't try to trick users into believing that they are Geico, there's no trademark infringement. It's no different than trying to get yourself on the same super market shelf as a more popular brand. You want to be in the same place when someone is looking for your competitor. If anything, Geico should be focusing on specific ads that confuse users into believing that the ads are for Geico instead of a competitor. Speaking of which, Google and Overture should have nothing to do with this case. They're not the ones who created the ads, but are simply the vehicle for delivering them. If Geico has a problem with the ads, they should be suing the advertiser in question. The fact that the judge didn't get these things early on suggests that Google and Overture's legal strategy has not worked properly so far. Considering the potential impact of a loss in this case, they may want to re-evaluate their legal strategy.

Google Major Advertising Policy Shift
on Trademarks

Google Major Advertising Policy Shift
on Trademarks 04/14/2004 06:31 PM
Opening what one noted SEM attorney called "the Gates of Trademark Hell" Google Changes their AdWords Trademark/Copyright Ad policy. Google has announced a TM policy shift that will basically allow competitors to bid on each other's trademarked terms with abandon. The only limitation is advertisers are not supposed to make unauthorized use of 3rd party TMs in their titles and copy...

Misunderstanding Trademarks: American
Blinds Suit Against Google Moves Forward

Misunderstanding Trademarks: American
Blinds Suit Against Google Moves Forward 03/31/2005 04:50 PM
It seems that this issue isn't going to die any time soon. While one court has said that Google didn't do anything wrong to Geico in allowing companies to sell ads based on the keyword Geico (something that Geico is still fighting), another one has denied Google's request to dismiss an almost identical case from American Blinds. There are two issues here, and both of them should end up in Google's favor. First, this is simply not a violation of trademark. The purpose of trademark law is not that you have total control over your trademark -- just that others cannot use it in a way that confuses people into believing that they are you or acting on your behalf. Throwing up ads based on keywords is a situation where people know that these are competitive ads. It's like saying that Coke could never use the word Pepsi in one of their ads. Second, even if these ads did violate trademark law, it would not be Google's fault. Google did not place the ad. It would be the fault of the person or company that placed the ad. On both fronts, Google should have a very strong claim against American Blinds, but apparently it wasn't enough for a summary judgment. As John Battelle points out, if the court eventually does decide to misunderstand the purpose of trademark law (a la the French), this could end up at the Supreme Court to settle the differences in lower court rulings. Of course, the question now is whether or not Dave Pell will be buying Google ads on the phrase "American Blinds."

Mysterious message linked to Google

Mysterious message linked to Google 07/09/2004 04:45 PM
Source: ZDNet - A mysterious mathematic message on a Silicon Valley billboard has sparked an online hunt for the author--but the mystery has been solved: it's Google....

Google widens net of firms selling IPO

Google widens net of firms selling IPO 05/22/2004 07:03 AM
San Jose Mercury News May 22 2004 10:49AM GMT

How Google Took the Work Out of Selling
Advertising

How Google Took the Work Out of Selling
Advertising 06/12/2004 08:11 PM
Google's AdSense program, unveiled last summer, uses search-driven ads and is still the company's largest source of revenue.

Google poised to lift its selling
restrictions

Google poised to lift its selling
restrictions 09/02/2004 06:18 AM
Staronline.com - Thu Sep 2, 09:37 am GMT

Google poised to lift selling
restrictions

Google poised to lift selling
restrictions 09/01/2004 06:49 PM
Boston Globe Sep 1 2004 10:36PM GMT

Google Leaders Selling Shares
(washingtonpost.com)

Google Leaders Selling Shares
(washingtonpost.com) 03/17/2005 04:08 AM
washingtonpost.com - Google Inc. co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, and other senior company executives, have sold more than $500 million worth of stock in the Internet search firm over the past several months, according to regulatory filings.

Google Says Okay To Selling Trademarked
Search Terms

Google Says Okay To Selling Trademarked
Search Terms 04/13/2004 02:10 PM
Considering the fact that they've come out on the losing end of a number of cases on this subject, it's a bit surprising that Google is so aggressively changing their ad terms to say that they will no longer prevent advertisers from buying ads based on trademarked keywords. There have been a ton of cases on this, from France< /a> to wallpap er to eBay to Playboy . In fact, despite all of this, Google was also sued by someone else who felt it was illegal that they were illega lly blocked from buying a trademarked keyword. While I think Google's position is the right one, the track record in court doesn't seem good. As we've said many, many times before, a trademark doesn't give you full control over a word or phrase. It's only designed to prevent confusion over the trademark. That is, if someone is presenting themselves as your company or your product, they have violated your trademark. However, to simply advertise themselves to anyone searching for your trademark - as long as it's clear that they're a different company - doesn't not violate the trademark. It's simply a good marketing strategy to position yourself where people are looking for that type of product. It's the same thing as making sure you're on the shelf in the store near your competitor. Thus, it seems as though Google's new rules fit with the spirit of trademark, but unfortunately too many people are misinterpreting trademark in a way to believe that it means you have total control over the trademarked word or phrase. No matter what, there are going to be a lot more lawsuits over this.

Google to lift restrictions on selling
insider shares

Google to lift restrictions on selling
insider shares 09/02/2004 06:18 AM
Tribnet.com - Thu Sep 2, 10:00 am GMT

Google Names More Underwriters and
widens net of firms selling IPO

Google Names More Underwriters and
widens net of firms selling IPO 05/24/2004 02:20 PM
"...expands to 31 the number of securities firms that will be selling shares in the offering. "

Google Poised to Lift Stock Selling
Restrictions

Google Poised to Lift Stock Selling
Restrictions 09/01/2004 10:32 PM
Hello, young millionaires. Google employees and other insiders will be free to sell an additional millions of shares Thursday, providing another test of the online search engine's popularity with investors.

Google poised to lift selling
restrictions on insider shares

Google poised to lift selling
restrictions on insider shares 09/01/2004 05:05 PM
San Francisco Chronicle Sep 1 2004 9:32PM GMT

Google ready to lift selling
restrictions on insider shares

Google ready to lift selling
restrictions on insider shares 09/02/2004 06:18 AM
Whittierdailynews.com - Thu Sep 2, 09:31 am GMT

Google Takes All

Google Takes All 08/05/2002 10:45 PM
Thomas Scott reminds me to post Ftrain.com: August 2009: How Google beat Amazon and Ebay to the Semantic Web, a story of future Googles and Semantic Webs. In my other life, I'm actually building this RDF stuff, so it's great to see I'm not alone in thinking Google should adopt it....

Microsoft takes on Google

Microsoft takes on Google 05/27/2004 12:23 PM
News24.com May 27 2004 3:27PM GMT

Google takes a gamble

Google takes a gamble 04/30/2004 07:37 AM
Computer Weekly Apr 30 2004 12:11PM GMT

Hotmail takes on Google

Hotmail takes on Google 06/24/2004 12:53 PM
Mad.co.uk Jun 24 2004 5:04PM GMT
Grok Description matches for Geico Takes Aim at Google Google for Selling Ads Linked to Trademarks
GrokA matches for Geico Takes Aim at Google Google for Selling Ads Linked to Trademarks

Geico Takes Aim at Google Google for Selling Ads Linked to Trademarks

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