Microsoft could face trademark fight over Vista OS name

IDG News Service - The founder of a Redmond, Wash.-based custom application and services provider is considering taking action to challenge Microsoft Corp. over the naming of the next version of the Windows operating system.
John Wall, CEO of Vista Inc., said his company is "considering all of its options" for a potential case against Microsoft because of the company's choice of the name Windows Vista for the version of the operating system previously code-named Longhorn (see Update: Microsoft's Longhorn becomes Windows Vista).
Wall said the name may violate a trademark his company has and potentially create confusion over the software and services Vista provides. Vista, based just down the road from Microsoft, provides small businesses with online information systems, including custom applications, as well as with consulting services.
"If people call it Windows Vista, that's not a problem," he said. "If people call it Vista, that confuses it with our business and what we do."
Wall said Vista will be analyzing traffic to its Web site, www.vista.com, to see what effect the Windows Vista name may have on visitors to the site. If the effect is significant -- that is, if a surge of visitors come to Vista.com looking for information about Windows Vista -- the company may decide to take legal actions over the trademark.
One of the key tests for whether a new trademark can be challenged or not is if it creates confusion over another company's products and services, said Bill Lozito, president of Strategic Name Development, a brand naming consultancy in Minneapolis. Vista potentially has a good case against Microsoft because its software and services are similar to what the software giant offers, he said. Because Microsoft is a larger, more recognizable company, the name confusion might drive some of Vista's potential customers to Microsoft.
"The ramifications are [customers] no longer associate you as this independent company and think you're a part of Microsoft," Lozito said. "If they need the service you're providing, they'll call Microsoft instead of you. You're going to get drowned out."
The issue for Vista is particularly prickly because the company deals mainly in the small-business market, a segment where Microsoft also figures prominently, he said.
Wall's company is not the only one that might have a case against Microsoft. There are at least two other software companies, both named Vista Software, that might have a good argument against Microsoft's using the Vista moniker, Lozito said. "Anyone using that name that's doing business in this category runs the risk of being overshadowed by Microsoft Windows