Apple sued for the use of 'Tiger' name

[deejemon]

*

 

[iomar]

Tiger Wood the golf player is very upset, too. Watch out Apple he might sue.

 

[snickelfritz]

Um... these guys are fulla crap.
All they have to do is a simple google search in court.

 

[jiggie2g]

Trapped in Newegg's shadow

This is just plain stupid. No one should ever try to claim ownership of a word/title/name as basic as Tiger , that's like trying to copyright your first name.

Personally I think Tiger Direct should be more worried about Newegg stealing all thier customers instead of Apple hurting thier marketing. Tiger Direct is nothing but a more expensive 2nd rate newegg.com, anyways people only shop there if they live in Canada or if Newegg is soldout on an item.

 

[Multimedia]

peter.amato@tigerdirect.com

Here's Mine. Thanks to Tera Patricks. We love you Tera!

peter.amato@tigerdirect.com

Subject: Your Bogus Lawsuit of Apple Computer

Dear Peter,
Just a quick note to tell you that I will NEVER buy another product from you for the rest of my life. You have produced a permanent STAIN on your phony stripes. I am very disappointed in your behavior. You think you can bust in at the last minute and spoil our party tomorrow? NO WAY Buster. You have already lost. Now leave the group and go to your corner for a time out. Shame on you. Unless you immediately apologize to the Mac community and withdraw your lawsuit against Apple Computer, the Mac community now and henceforth puts a permanent spell of bad luck on you.

By the way, I drive a "Tiger" brand RV. You want to sue all my fellow "Tiger" RV owners for having the word "Tiger" plastered on the side of our RVs? You Worm.

How about suing me for having "MAC TIGR" license plates on the front and rear of my "Tiger" RV? What about my Uniroyal Tiger Paw GTS Tires? Come on Peter. Let's have a party in a Santa Cruz California Court Room. You maggot.

Taylor Barcroft
Santa Cruz CA

My Tiger XL RV
My MAC TIGR License Plates
My Uniroyal Tiger Paw Tires

 

[StarbucksSam]

Tiger Wood the golf player is very upset, too. Watch out Apple he might sue.

I'm pretty sure that's a joke, but I don't know why he would be. If someone named an OS after me, i'd be pretty flattered. Mac OS SAM. LOL.

 

[deanbo]

Bollocks!!

Maybe they'll sue the animals because striped felines appear in Google's search results ahead of them.
QUOTE]

What a pile of absolute crap! How do you sue someone over using the name of a animal as a codename?

This reminds me of the Beatle's publisher case. Their case was over the use of the name "Apple".

In my vast legal experience, something can only be patented (trademarked... whatever) if it is a unique and original idea.

So unless Tiger Direct is suddenly churning out four legged furry animals, I really don't see how they have a case. (Of course, I don't happen to live in the US though).

 

[jnasato]

This reminds me of the time that I tried to sue Apple for launching "Apple Computer, Inc.", when I had my fruit company, Apples Direct.

I'm still waiting for the paperwork to be processed... Those BASTARDS!

 

[PretendPCuser]

Google Tiger and most things related to computers

and you get tigerdirect. 1-2-3. The only time i didn't get tigerdirect in the #1 position in google was when I searched for "tiger apple computer". Rankwhere says that even with this search, Tigerdirect is coming up with rank of 5 on MSN, 6 on AltaVista, and 7 on All the Web. It's not showing up in google at all *probably because they didn't optimize that keyword phrase* Hmmmm...

This, folks, is pandering to get media attention. Nothing major will come of this. Court is not going to stop Apple from releasing Tiger.

Oh great, now I have to change my sig....this post may actually be useful!!

D'oh!!!

 

[Bengt77]

Has this been posted yet?

If I google for "tiger direct" all hits link to either Tiger Direct itself or to articles around the web concerning Tiger Direct. Okay, this is too rediculous. When I just google for "tiger", Tiger Direct is actually the third result, and Apple only the fifth. (Tiger Woods is the eighth, by the way.)

What a bunch of losers.

 

[ShnikeJSB]

Actually, this is funny...

I just read that after "Baby Ruth" the candy bar came out (which by the way has nothing to do with Babe Ruth), Babe Ruth tried to make his own candy called "Babe Ruth's Home Run Candy" or something like that, and he was sued by the company that made Baby Ruth and lost, so basically he lost the ability to use HIS OWN NAME!!! We really need to overhaul the way things work around this country... -JB

 

[iMeowbot]

Actually, after looking at their complaint, they do claim that the own a registration for the mark TIGER. When I looked at the registration, it is owned by Systemax, Inc., which is a corporation that happens to have the same address as Tiger Direct, Inc. I assume they're related companies.

Yes, Systemax is their parent company. They also own Global, MISCO and a few others.

Ah, Here.

 

[Chappers]

I'm sure its already been said but........

This is just great free publicity for them and I'm sure loads of people googled them and went to their online store.

I'm sure probably a large number of us went along and had a look.

 

[StarbucksSam]

I'm sure its already been said but........

This is just great free publicity for them and I'm sure loads of people googled them and went to their online store.

I'm sure probably a large number of us went along and had a look.

That is probably true, however many of us, who are not very familiar with Tiger Direct, like myself, have already made snap judgements on the company because of the context it has been mentioned in and what people are saying. Like most children, these people at Tiger Direct probably think that negative attention is better than no attention at all, but they will soon regret that.

 

[Chappers]

That is probably true, however many of us, who are not very familiar with Tiger Direct, like myself, have already made snap judgements on the company because of the context it has been mentioned in and what people are saying. Like most children, these people at Tiger Direct probably think that negative attention is better than no attention at all, but they will soon regret that.

Your right for us Mac lovers but for the PC weenies who hate Macs then they will probably think Tiger Direct are great.

 

[rvernout]

Actually, it doesn't pass the straight face test for several reasons:

1. They don't use 'Tiger' alone any more - and probably never have. They use "Tigerdirect" and "TigeronTV" and similar things, but never 'Tiger'. That alone is enough to stop enforcement.

By that logic, if I open a store called 'Joe's Jazzy Musical Instruments', I could stop Joe's Catering from using the name.

2. Their complaint is just plain silly. Look at how they put 'UNLEASHED' in all caps - as if it was so horrendous. It also looks petty.

3. There's no risk of confusion.

4. Apple's Tiger is an operating system which can't be confused with a mail order outfit - and doesn't conflict with the Tiger trademark.

5. A company has a legal obligation to try to minimize disruption to the marketplace. Their stunt of waiting until the day before Tiger is released opens them for all sorts of extortion and tortuous interference claims.

Tiger's going to lose - big time.

Which Tiger you mean is going to lose? I'm confused now.

 

[kirk26]

fill out the form at the bottom of this page and tell them how you feel, I did.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/sectors/help/contactus.asp

Cool thanks. This is what I wrote:

"Are you low on money or something??? Need sue to Apple for their "Tiger" operating system? You guys are a bunch of losers! Get a life. BTW, I love your catalogs. Please continue to send them to me.

Steve Jobs"

 

[johnnyastro]

I live near Tiger Direct HQ and their 2 retail stores. In fact, their new retail store is less than a mile away from the miami apple store. I think I'll stop in there today and ask if they have the new apple OS. When they say no, I'll say "but your name says tiger direct! I thought for sure you would have it!"

P.S. back in the 80's, tiger direct started out as a huge mac mail order business. I used to get mac stuff from them all the time. Check your old issues of macworld kiddies!

 

[Diavilo1]

This is hilarious/pathetic/petty all at the same time. Come on TD. I really wish the compay i work for had the time for frivilous lawsuits, we make a ton since we have the word computer in our title. Just think, if we would sue each company with Computer in the name for a $1...wow. Thanks TD for making my morning enjoyable with someone to laugh at, you've made my rainy friday morning interesting. Good luck with getting your butt kicked.

 

[SPUY767]

Actually. . .

What Bullcr•p. People don't "own" the word tiger. Tiger is the name of a big cat. How stupid. One day we'll get sued for using all nouns. How ridiculous.

YOu patent names based on the product. i.e. apple has patented Tiger in terms of a computer OS, whereas I could trademark tiger for use in a sports car and apple couldn't sue me. The only case that apple has ever really had trouble with, and this is a crok, IMHO, is Apple Computer vs Apple Corps Ltd. Apple Corps, due to their aparent inability to sign any big artists, is still riding the Beatles wave, and suing Apple Computer repeatedly to stay alive. I do however, think that Apple Corps finally gave up, b/c hey haven't sued apple lately even with them being heavily involved in the Music industry.

 

[lazylightnin]

TOO FUNNY

I love macs and run a company that has used them heavily for 20 years, but I love the "taste of their own medicine" aspect of this. Apple would never sue for commercial advantage, would they?

Apple has done so much damage to their brand lately they need to get slapped around in the hope it wakes them up and stops them from self-destructing. They are on the verge of becoming completely uncool

Anyway, thanks for the link to Tiger Direct. I went there and showed my feelings by buying a bunch of stuff. They are my new heros

 

[ReanimationLP]

Like someone else said, if TigerDirect was to sell Mac OS X Tiger, they'd dump 600 pounds of mail in rebates on it, making you send them all over the country, trying to sell it for 10 dollars, with that stupida$$ CEO emailing you going "Steve Jobs didnt want us to bring you this deal but we are" TigerDirect SUCKS. Stick with Newegg. They actually CARRY Mac OS X Tiger. At the real retail price.

 

[jkhanson]

I'd be stunned if an injuction were actually handed down in this pathethic lawsuit.

Still, injunction or no, my Tiger party will be starting in a few hours. It's on the FedEx truck for delivery!

 

[Artful Dodger]

WOW some day I won't be able to go to the zoo and see Tigers only "nameless" big cats or Zebras and they will have their stripes covered since the "White Stripes" band could sue with any thing having "white/stripes"

 

[lssmit02]

"Tiger" is a perfectly fine trademark

Systemax, Tiger Direct's parent, only claims to own the term "Tiger" for use on the following goods and services:

Mail order catalog services featuring computers and computer related products; and Retail store services featuring computers and computer related products.​

They don't claim to own the word "tiger," they claim to own the word "tiger" when it is used to designate the source of certain products or services. That is, they own the goodwill they've developed in the term "tiger" to the extent that consumers associate that word with the source of certain goods or services sold under that term.

With a trademark, you don't own the mark in gross, you own the mark in relation to the trade for the goods or services that you use the mark on. So, Apple Computer owns APPLE for selling computer hardware and software (along with a lot of other stuff, of course). However, Apple Corps Limited, the Beatles' recording company, has a registration for the term "Apple" for:

gramophone records featuring music; pre-recorded audio tape cassettes featuring music; audio compact discs featuring music; pre-recorded video tape cassettes featuring music; [ video laser discs featuring music ]​

The touchstone is always the consumer. As soon as consumers no longer associate a trademark with a particular source of products, then the term is no longer functioning as a trademark.

This is why Tiger Direct is concerned about OS X Tiger - if consumers only come to associate "Tiger" for selling computers with Apple Computer, then Tiger Direct has lost its mark.