RIM hit with trademark lawsuit over BBX, name of next BlackBerry OS

By Alex Ferguson, 3L at Gonzaga University School of Law

Full article at RIM hit with trademark lawsuit over BBX, name of next BlackBerry OS.

Upon seeing the headline I assumed that this lawsuit was going to be in the same vein as all of the other recent mobile phone lawsuits, which appear to be filed to annoy competitors. However, it appears that Basis has a strong claim and reason for wanting to protect its BBx mark against RIM’s use of BBX.

Basis makes software tools that run on multiple operating systems, including Android, iOS, and Blackberry and is alleging that RIM’s use will confuse its customers into believing that its products will only be compatible with RIM’s BBX operating system. Therefore, Basis is seeking an injunction against RIM, preventing the use of BBX. RIM believes that the marks participate in different markets and will not lead to a likelihood of confusion.