WIPR survey story: Google trademark is not generic, say readers
Google’s trademark should not be deemed a generic term for searching the internet, according to 66% of respondents to WIPR’s latest survey.
In a highly popular survey, the majority of readers threw their support behind Google, which is mired in a court battle that could be heard at the US Supreme Court.
The plaintiffs, David Elliott and Christopher Gillespie, filed a petition for a writ of certiorari to review a decision made by the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that backed Google.
They have asked the US Supreme Court to review whether the widespread use of “google” as a verb meaning “to search the internet”, without regard to which search engine is used, means the mark has become generic.
Lots of survey respondents who backed Google made the same point—that even when internet users say they want to “google” something, they know that this involves using the Google search engine, rather than any other.
For example, one reader said: “Although used as a verb, it is not ever used to describe other search engines—simply it is the search engine almost everyone uses.”
Another reader said the trademark has acquired distinctiveness and secondary meaning, as the majority of people associate it with the website Google.
One reader commented: “Do people use the word ‘google’ as a verb? Yes, but so what? When I do so, I do not mean an act carried out on any old search engine, but an act carried on Google’s search engine, which remains the only one that I use, given a choice.
“The word still denotes that company and its products and services (even its search-related services). It will be interesting to hear what the evidence actually points towards in terms of the perceptions and usage of the wider user base.”
According to another reader, the petitioners are “simply trying to get a free ride by using ‘Google’ in their own marks and domain names”.
However, other readers disagreed, with one simply stating that the trademark should be deemed generic because it is used as a verb.
Another added: “In the minds of many people, Google has become a generic term for searching the non-dark web. In fact, it’s one of many excellent search engines used for this task. By example, consider ‘Kleenex’ now used generically as reference to facial tissues.”
According to another, the word “google” has fallen into common usage as referring to searching the internet, so while the logo mark may still be distinctive, the word mark is generic.
For this week’s survey question, we ask: US President Donald Trump has announced his intention to nominate Andrei Iancu as director of the US Patent and Trademark Office to replace Michelle Lee. Do you think this would be a good choice?
