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Little Guy Gives Up (7/1/98)
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Unfortunately, it's the premature end of another promising legal drama; Microsoft and SyNet have settled out of court for the right to use the name "Internet Explorer." SyNet's founder finally rolled over and accepted a paltry $5 million to dismiss the case and hand over his federal trademark application to Microsoft. CNET's got the goods.
What really surprises us is that SyNet's founder would have accepted only $5 million for the rights to the name. After all, his legal fees eat up $2 million right off the bat, and his business was bankrupted by the legal costs associated with the case, which has been dragging on for years. For a man who seemed so upset about Microsoft being able to steamroll the "little guy," he really changed his tune. Considering he had been granted the trademark and stood a good chance to win his case, we're quite stunned that he'd accept so little for giving up the rights to the name of one of Microsoft's most important products. (It would have cost Microsoft at least six times that amount to change the name of its browser, according to the Wall Street Journal.) Ah, well... Two years is a long time for anyone to fight Microsoft.
By the way, remember how Microsoft's big legal argument against SyNet was that "Internet Explorer" was a generic term, and therefore it could not be registered as a trademark? And that SyNet, in registering the name, was "appropriating the English language?" Well, just take a wild stab in the dark as to what Microsoft apparently plans to do with the trademark application it bought for $5 million. Yup, you guessed it-- Internet Explorer may soon become Internet Explorer®. Funny how over two years of vehement arguments dissolve overnight when suddenly Microsoft is the company applying for the trademark, hmmm? Always remember, "it's only wrong if they do it."
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SceneLink (822)
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 7/1/98 episode: July 1, 1998: Microsoft can add another notch to its big scary belt, as another little guy gives up the ghost. Meanwhile, CompUSA's not having the best time these days, but at least you can now pre-order an iMac from them...
Other scenes from that episode: 823: Addressing the Slump (7/1/98) Times are tough all over; just take a gander at CompUSA's reported fourth quarter sales results, available from Infoseek. Yes, their net sales increased by 3% from the same quarter a year ago, but if you only look at the sales from stores that have been open for over a year, it seems that CompUSA's sales have declined by 8.7%... 824: Place Your Orders (7/1/98) So if the iMac is a potential sales booster for CompUSA, it may the last possible salvation for Apple. Apple once had a sizeable chunk of the consumer market, but have since piddled it away by somehow thinking that the Performa line could hold its own against the onslaught of PC's with more features and lower price tags...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
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