Patent Law

Facebook Shuts Down “Facebook Ultimate” iPad App

By Douglas J. Sorocco, J. Matthew Buchanan, Laura C. Woods and Emily E. Campbell.

Such a sad story.  An independent developer and mom of two was unhappy with the features of the free Facebook client and tried to make a positive difference by creating the 'Facebook Ultimate' app.  Unfortunately, the developer incorporated the term Facebook into the name of her app and even created a similar icon for the app.  (Seen at right.)  The app was recently shut down for supposed trademark infringement. 

Unfortunately, this is an all too common problem for startups and small businesses that do not have a legal team glued to their hip warning them about improperly using the trademarks, patents, and copyrights of others.  But, as my mom always said, there is a lesson in everything.  We can learn from this legal blunder.  Generally, it is a good idea to consult a legal professional who practices in the areas of patents, trademarks, and copyrights before releasing a new product into the marketplace.  In fact, it's even better to consult a legal professional long before you are even thinking about releasing the product to the marketplace.  This way, you can avoid spending money to correct marketing materials, product packaging, etc.

Check out what some of the bigwigs, like Sony and Apple are doing to avoid trademark infringement in this article by Laurel Sutton of Catchword. 

In the end, a sad story for Facebook Ultimate, but a lesson we can all benefit from.  Please use caution when naming and branding your next big idea! 

Full post as published by Phosita on April 06, 2010 (boomark / email).