Microsoft 'Kumo' not just for search |
Register here for our next TechFlash Live networking event, March 23, featuring an expert panel discussing the future of online advertising.
Microsoft 'Kumo' not just for search
Microsoft has filed for a trademark on "Kumo," which the company is reportedly considering as the new name for its Live Search engine. But the filing, made Dec. 4, seeks to reserve rights to the name for more than just search.
The company might just be covering its bases by being as broad as possible. But apart from the references to core search functionality in the trademark filing, there's a mention of "telecommunication services, including receipt and delivery of information, messages, documents, images and other data by electronic transmission."
For whatever it's worth, that seems more like a reference to e-mail or instant-messaging.
As noted previously, an unknown person in Venezuela filed for a trademark on the Kumo name earlier this year, also under the category of search engines. I have a call out to a trademark lawyer to try to figure out the implications of that earlier filing. I've also asked Microsoft if it's now in a position to comment on its plans for the Kumo name. I'll update this post depending on the response.
(Trademark filing via LiveSide and Seattle P-I)
Update, 4:30 p.m.: Looks like Microsoft has a solid defense if it comes down to a trademark dispute with Dascar Samira Facendo, the Venezuelan who filed for the Kumo trademark previously.
I spoke this afternoon with Michael Atkins, a trademark lawyer at Graham & Dunn who has been following the Kumo saga on his Seattle Trademark Lawyer blog. On the phone, Atkins dug deeper into the filings and discovered that Microsoft is citing the fact that it applied for the Kumo trademark in June in South Africa, of all places. Under U.S. law, that would appear to give Microsoft precedence over Facendo's subsequent application for the trademark.
"Basically, Microsoft is saying, 'Nice try, but we filed ahead of you,' " Atkins said.
For the record, a Microsoft spokesman declined to comment on the company's plans for the Kumo name.
About Todd Bishop
Todd Bishop is co-founder and managing editor of TechFlash. He has covered Microsoft and the technology industry for more than five years, most recently as a daily newspaper reporter and blogger based in Seattle.
READ FULL BIOGRAPHYRecent Sponsor Posts
Seattle University Software Engineering
Chinwe Okeke (MSE’08) pursued her graduate degree while working as a developer and technical analyst for the Boeing Company. She picked the SU-MSE program for small class sizes and real world learning opportunities offered through the academic service-learning and capstone projects.
The MSE program at Seattle University is geared for working professionals with classes offered in the evenings. The program builds upon the computing experience of its students and offers courses in a variety of technical and management areas of software engineering, with an emphasis on teamwork and a disciplined approach to problem solving.
Marchex is one of Seattle’s largest ad technology companies with 300+ employees providing call and click based performance marketing products, and managing over $100m in ad budget for tens of thousands of advertisers. Our customers range from local businesses to the Fortune 500.
Our talented and creative product engineering group is hiring.
If you are an innovative software design engineer interested in solving difficult problems at scale, across a wide array of technologies from Lucene to Hadoop to Asterisk and SIP then we’d love to hear from you!
Apply now.
Technology Tax Planning – Did You Take The Deduction?
Technology companies require professional advisors who can assist in all aspects of the business. The BDO Technology Practice provides a full range of services tailored to help address the changing needs of domestic and international companies. In addition to core audit and tax services, BDO professionals can assist technology companies with:
· Revenue recognition
· Business combination accounting
· R&D tax credits
· Compensation and benefits
· Business valuations
Backed by 38 national offices and an international network in 110 countries, we have the domestic and global footprint to serve growing technology companies. Contact sphilpott@bdo.com (audit partner), mreeves@bdo.com (audit partner), psmith@bdo.com (tax partner), tzambito@bdovaluation.us.com (valuation), tfiscus@bdo.com, Director, 206.624.2020
Job Listings
- Software Development Engineer - Display Advertising
- Business Services Company
- Director Enterprise Architecture - IT
- Starbucks Coffee Company
- Senior Program Manager - External - 713665
- Microsoft Corporation
- Quality Improvement Specialist
- HCR ManorCare
- Senior Software Development Engineer - eXtreme Computing Group - 708427
- Microsoft Corporation
