A Chinese company is suing Google Inc. because the search giant’s Chinese name is too similar to it’s own. Their demand is pretty simple actually; Google should change its Chinese name to something else… anything but the Guge it’s using now:
A spokesman for Beijing Guge Science and Technology Ltd. Co. said Google’s commercial name had led to the company being constantly disturbed by people calling up its office trying to contact the search engine.
“We just want Google to change their commercial name,” Tian Yunshan, a company official, told Reuters on Friday. “We have already passed our demands on to Google … We will see what happens in court.”
July 13th, 2007 at 3:50 pm
Alamaak! I would be happy if such errors happened. Free advertising man. “I’m sorry we are not the Google company you were looking for, however we may have something that might interest you…etc-etc”
July 13th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
Heh, but it can get irritating you know;
“I’m calling you about inflated clicks on my AdWords bla bla bla… I want a refund on my $12k payment!”
Will you still be happy then?
July 13th, 2007 at 6:25 pm
Hmmm, case could go either way. Google is internationally known, and Guge isn’t that similar to Google at all.
After all, McKormick foods lost to Mrs McKormick after she started selling spices [McKormicks make spices in Australia], as the courts said the names & packaging were different enough not to cause confusion, and they’re a lot closer than Guge and Google.
But, then there is the case of Harry Potter clothing which had been around for over ten years before the books, but as soon as J.K. Rowling decided to move into clothing she sued the clothing company and got the trade mark on the name for clothes for herself.
So, will be interesting to see what happens.
July 13th, 2007 at 6:29 pm
Dabido,
Actually the Chinese pronunciation of their company names are exactly the same. Hence, the suit.
Personally, I have a strong feeling that the two companies will work out an amicable deal.
July 14th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
Hmmm, Google must get pronounced funny on Mainland China! lol Or do they include an ‘L’ sound in Guge?
July 15th, 2007 at 2:26 am
Aww.. Google have to change to which name then? Gugu?
July 16th, 2007 at 8:02 am
Google to “Goku” probably. LOL.
I think the Chinese company has the right to sue for that matter. BUT whether they will win or not… hmmm… must be out of court case lah.
July 16th, 2007 at 10:10 am
I thinks Ah-Girl sounds better! Hahah!
July 16th, 2007 at 1:56 pm
Hmm..ya kan..
July 16th, 2007 at 9:19 pm
If i were guge i will ask to be google’s main partner in China, so it’s worth taking up the calls and complaints.
July 17th, 2007 at 8:58 am
Zul: If not for the fact that they probably know jack about Google’s business backend