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TV giant loses in High Court fight ; YOUVIEW FACES NAME CHANGE AFTER 3RD DEFEAT [Mirror (UK)](Mirror (UK) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) TV giant YouView could be forced to change its name after losing a David v Goliath battle yesterday. The High Court ruled that the company, which has pumped Pounds 70million into launching its catch-up service, infringed a trademark owned by a small Gloucestershire-based telecoms firm. Total, which has 37,000 customers compared with YouView's one million, registered the similarly sounding Yourview name for a product in 2009. It is now seeking an injunction along with costs in a bid to prevent YouView using the name. The ruling is Total's third victory in a long-running row. YouView announced it will appeal. YouView is backed by the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5, along with telecoms heavyweights BT, TalkTalk and Arqiva. It used to be chaired by tycoon Lord Sugar. The venture was originally set up in 2010, when it tried to trademark the name. It pressed ahead with a launch in May 2012, despite failing to get it. In his ruling yesterday, High Court judge Mr Justice Sales said Total had acted in good faith to "protect its own legitimate interests" and was not out to thwart YouView. Lorrin White, boss of Total, which has 37 employees and turned over Pounds 11.3m last year, said: "While Total may not compare to YouView in terms of size, we both operate in the same industry space." Lawyer Paul Gordon, who represented Total, added: "This is the most significant of the three wins that Total has obtained over YouView. "I think Total has shown great courage and principle in pursuing YouView to trial." A YouView spokesman said: "We are planning to appeal against the High Court's decision. "We maintain that there is no confusion between our consumer- facing TV service, YouView, and the businessto-business billing platform, Yourview, provided by Total Ltd." (c) 2014 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |