Legal Commentary

Anybody who has ever spent five minutes in any organization that creates products or services knows that naming those products or services can be pure torture. Like writing headlines or haiku, naming products is more angst-generating than choosing a moniker for a newborn.

But (at least for a writer), few things in life are as satisfying as finding just the right words. Especially when you are rivals, like Coke & Pepsi; McDonalds & Burger King; Khrushchev & Kennedy; Red Sox & Yankees; or Thomson Reuters & LexisNexis.

Earlier this year, TR launched WestlawNext, a major upgrade of its flagship research service, at LegalTech New York. During the same show, LN said it, too, would be revamping its core product. This week, LN christened the renovation, telling their employees they no longer needed to call it "New Lexis," it has a given name: Lexis Advance.

Marc Osborn says Lexis Advance will debut over the coming months:  "It will be rolled out in phases for different segments of the market over an extended period of time, starting later this year and moving forward into next year," he explains. But it now has a name.

P.S. Steve Jobs just announced that you can get a free case, or a full refund, if you are unhappy with your iPhone 4. Why do we know folks in Redmond are smiling?