Intel Corporation Sues ‘Vital Intel’ For Trademark Violation

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Intel filed a lawsuit against a digital marketing company based in San Francisco for calling itself “Vital Intel.” According to the chip maker, using such a name infringes and dilutes the firm’s trademarks, says a report from ArsTechnica.

Vital Intel a rival for Intel RM

“Defendant has refused to take this matter seriously and engage in a substantive dialogue,” the chipmaker’s lawyers write.

Intel has been trying for a year to solve the matter, but with no results, the chip maker said in a complaint filed on Thursday. With no other options available, the company filed the trademark infringement complaint against the digital marketing company. Tom Waldrop, a spokesperson for the tech giant says, “We have an obligation to our shareholders to protect the investment in our brand.”

According to Vital Intel’s website, it assists with “demographic targeting and behavioral targeting” by developing “lead generation websites.” Intel’s Retail Client Manager, also known as RCM, is an intelligent software solution that enhances ad campaigns to reach the target audiences, and is similar to Vital Intel does, says the report.

Similarities enough to confuse customers

According to the chip maker’s lawyers, customers are confused by the similar name of Vital Intel, hampering the chip makers “valuable reputation and goodwill.” The company says it owns several trademarks using the company name, which are not only limited to integrated circuits and semiconductors, but also cover the usage in “sports bags, gym bags, carry-on bags, towels, and clothing” along with using them in connection with telecommunications consulting services.

Intel noted that each and every aspect of the San Francisco-based firm’s logo caused confusion. The colors used in the Vital Intel logo are very similar to Intel’s. Even the way in which the two words “VITAL” “INTEL” are written in the logo causes a recognition problem, notes the report.

It is not the first time Intel has filed trademark lawsuits related to its name. In 2008, the chip maker was involved in around 15 similar lawsuits. In one case, the firm sued a travel agency while in another it filed charges against an electrician operating as “Intellectric. So far in 2015, this is the only trademark issue case the firm is involved in

Intel filed the case against the San Francisco-based firm over the trademark issues in Northern District of California, where both the companies are located. As of now, there has been no comment from Vital Intel over the matter.

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