I've been asked to change my app name, what can I do?

1 point·DaveSapien··5 comments

I've got a kids book on iOS that has a(very)similar name to a BtoB app on OSX (for developers). I'd like to change it and not be an ass, but its a very generic name firstly. And secondly the name fits my book perfectly as well as the naming convention of my new and future books. Has anyone else had this issue? How did you handle it? Thanks, Dave.

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In the UK they'd need to show that your app would cause confusion for consumers detrimental to them, and that'd be almost impossible if one's a kids book and the other is a dev app on another platform. It all depends on where they're threatening to litigate.

Well I'm in the uk, but all business is really done in the US. So who knows. No threats, fairly civil so far. Thanks for the feed back!

Well, the first thing I'd try would be to argue that, given the difference in platform and target audience, there's no significant likelihood of confusion. Assuming unreasonability on the part of the B2B developer, I'd then find out whether they have a trademark on the name; if not, they likely have no recourse, while if so, it's worth both parties' time to consider whether an infringement case is worth the time and effort to mount (for the dev) or defend (for you).

To add: trademarks aren't universal, they apply on categories of goods.

Yeah there is a lot to take into account, I really just dont want to step on folks toes. Though the feedback I'm getting so far is certainly in my favour. Thinking more and more using generic words to name your software is silly if you're worried about other people using similar words in differing order. For example the difference between calling something Cat in the Hat, and CatintheHat. Thanks for your feedback.

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