Meta Gets In A Legal Knot Over Infinity Symbol Logo
With a logo like that, Meta is potentially setting itself up for a, well, infinity’s worth of clashes with other businesses that are also using the symbol.
The tech giant is being sued by Swiss nonprofit blockchain platform Dfinity, which is concerned that Meta’s infinity branding would overshadow its mission and mislead consumers into thinking that the two entities are associated, Reuters reports.
Dfinity’s emblem also features an infinity sign, though its version is rounder and more colorful.
According to a lawsuit filed in California federal court on Friday, Meta—which rebranded from Facebook last October—submitted a trademark application for its logo in March 2022. Dfinity, on the other hand, began operations in 2016 and has apparently been using its current logo since 2017. The latter registered for trademark protection in 2018.
It’s worth pointing out that similar logos aren’t what is truly causing the conflict. Cointelegraph details that it’s more about the fact that both companies offer overlapping products and services. Dfinity cites an internal Meta memo that suggests the social media behemoth is also working on its own blockchain technologies.
Dfinity additionally argues in its lawsuit that both parties have a similar audience, “namely those who are looking for an innovative and different internet experience, created by users, for users.”
Its attorneys add that since Meta and Dfinity communicate with users through the same marketing channels, consumers could chance upon both logos and get confused.
Further, the interests of both organizations are in conflict, as Dfinity intends to “take on Big Tech and its growing control over user data.” Meta, on the other hand, has been widely disparaged over how it handles user privacy.
Dfinity is seeking monetary damages and is asking for an injunction on the Meta logo—which means that Meta would have to tweak its infinity trademark if the nonprofit wins.
Meta Platforms (Facebook) is being sued over its logo.
— Josh Gerben (@JoshGerben) May 2, 2022
A Swiss non-profit that develops blockchain technology (Dfinity), has filed a lawsuit claiming that Meta's new logo is too similar to its own.
Apparently, an infinity logo is all the rage in Web3.#meta #Facebook #Web3 pic.twitter.com/4Ay4a12uKy
[via Reuters and Cointelegraph, images via various sources]
