Eu Court Rules Skype, Sky Names 'Too Similar'

The EU ruled Tuesday that Skype, the online video chat service, cannot register its name as a trademark because it is too similar to broadcaster Sky's.



The service, owned by U.S. software giant Microsoft, had registered the name and its bubble logo as a trademark in 2004 but a year later Sky complained to the EU's Office for the Harmonization in the Internal Market about potential confusion between the two brands.



The General Court of the European Union's decision is the second blow for a major U.S. firm in Europe after last month's antitrust charges against Internet search engine Google.



In a statement, the court said the word 'sky' was "part of the basic vocabulary of the English language" and was "clearly identifiable in the word 'skype.'"



Microsoft has the right to appeal to the European Court of Justice within two months. - Brüksel