Court of Appeal dismisses William Hill appeal over 32Red trademark victory

[The Buzz]

The long legal battle between 32Red and William Hill, which was accused of infringing on 32Red's trademarks with its old site, 32Vegas, appears to be over.

32Red, which had won a victory in an initial ruling, has once again prevailed, as the Court of Appeal upheld the High Court's ruling and dismissed William Hill's appeal of the case.

From The Telegraph:

Ivor Jones, an analyst at Numis, said 32Red had now convincingly won its trademark infringement action against the other bookmaker.

"The result vindicates 32Red's dogged defence of its interests against well-financed opposition," he said. "The only uncertainty now is how much, and how quickly, William Hill is going to have to pay up."

William Hill was ordered to pay 32Red £70,000 within a fortnight in relation to costs associated with the appeal, but the full damages tied to the case have yet to be settled.

Full story here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...al-battle.html

[Caruso]

Yeah, I mean, everyone knows the number 32 belongs to 32Red, right?

Can they sue me now I've said "number 32"?

Maybe we should redesign the number system, so it goes straight from 31 to 33. We wouldn't want to risk our children, while learning to count, inadvertently ending up in jail.

[Ixian]

Yeah, I mean, everyone knows the number 32 belongs to 32Red, right?

Can they sue me now I've said "number 32"?

Maybe we should redesign the number system, so it goes straight from 31 to 33. We wouldn't want to risk our children, while learning to count, inadvertently ending up in jail.

One would think that the trademark would be 32Red and not just the number 32.
What will happen if you send out birthday invitations for your 32nd birthday party, would you be infringing on their trademark. lol

[joeyl]

William Hill were taking the piss and got called. Good.

[Caruso]

What about 36Vegas?

That couldn't breach copyright. So 32Red are claiming copyright of the number 32.

I call bullshit.

[joeyl]

Yeah but we know what they were doing. Can't say I'm not surprised they won, because I'd have thought your point of view would have won the day, but I can't deny I'm happy the little guy won this time.

[online-casino]

Ed Ware, chief executive of 32Red, said: "Quite correctly, the Court of Appeal's judgment supported the view that taking advantage of a well-known brand such as 32Red is not acceptable.

If you wish to gamble at 32Red, why would you go to 32Vegas? If you think that 32Red and 32Vegas are the same, it's hard to say that in your situation one brand is taking advantage of the other one's reputation. I can't understand the logic of the decision-makers in this case. I won't lose sleep after learning the result of this case, but it proves that there's no justice in the world. William Hill will not go broke after paying whatever they will be sentenced to pay, but when I look at other threads where simple guys tell about being approached by big companies because of domain names, I get worried about this tendency.

[32x]

If you wish to gamble at 32Red, why would you go to 32Vegas? If you think that 32Red and 32Vegas are the same, it's hard to say that in your situation one brand is taking advantage of the other one's reputation. I can't understand the logic of the decision-makers in this case. I won't lose sleep after learning the result of this case, but it proves that there's no justice in the world. William Hill will not go broke after paying whatever they will be sentenced to pay, but when I look at other threads where simple guys tell about being approached by big companies because of domain names, I get worried about this tendency.

They could go after 32.com as well. Under Class 041, in which they have their trade mark, 32.com is in violation because they are a games site and have casino games. Under the trade mark classes in which they have their registration, they could take a company on the Vegas Strip if they advertise on the internet:

UK Class 41:
Casino services; betting services; gambling services; bookmaking services; casino, betting, gaming, gambling and bookmaking services provided by means of electronic media, the internet, telecommunications, telephone, wireless or offshore telephone, or television.

32.com is an old domain and worth a lot of money but they haven't approach them, because they are trying to scare us ONLY.

As long as you registered the domain in good faith, and you protect yourself by hiring a good attorney who is willing to push them into a courtroom, they will do nothing!

But your point is EXTREMELY well taken and I do agree. This is ridiculous!

I don't know about England or South Africa where 32Royal (Heather) is, but in the US there are Full Disclosure Laws. They did not inform Heather that she had rights, in my opinion, and there may still be a statute of limitations pending if the same applies in SF or UK. I wouldn't be surprised if they threatened Heather with a trade mark that they didn't have yet either, as they did with me. I will look into it.

They are going to push the wrong person in the wrong place, and they are going to find themselves on BBC, CNN and MSNBC bullying little guys who can't defend themselves. This is why I feel, in my opinion, that the 2 domain hand-overs were done privately. Of course, they have to brag like BULLIES as if they have won a big war.

It would be like a Major League football team beating a High School football team, and then bragging about the victory. It's pathetic!



http://32xforum.blogspot.com

[online-casino]

They are going to push the wrong person in the wrong place, and they are going to find themselves on BBC, CNN and MSNBC bullying little guys who can't defend themselves. This is why I feel, in my opinion, that the 2 domain hand-overs were done privately. Of course, they have to brag like BULLIES as if they have won a big war.

It's good you're ready to stand by your rights. Besides, it will also give you some publicity Just imagine how many people have already checked out what 32vegas is after reading the news, so even though William Hill wasn't that lucky in court, they got their additional share of fame. You can be the next. Besides, I'm sure that in either case very few people will feel for the 32Red.