Seattle Post-Intelligencer: Ruling Questions Protected Use of the Name 'Windows'

[ Thanks to Michael Jang for this link. ]

"Windows, one of the best-known trademarks in the world, may not be a name Microsoft Corp. can own and use exclusively, a federal judge ruled [Friday].

"In a narrow, preliminary ruling that could change at trial, Chief U.S. District Judge John Coughenour wrote that there are "serious questions regarding whether 'Windows' is a non-generic name and thus eligible for the protections of federal trademark law."

"He made the ruling in a case Microsoft brought against Lindows.com Inc., a 6-month-old San Diego start-up trying to introduce an operating system called Lindows..."

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