Oracle Sues CryptoOracle for Trademark infringement

California-based software and cloud computing giant Oracle has filed a lawsuit against CryptoOracle, a blockchain startup, for cybersquatting and stealing its name.

CryptoOracle was established in 2007. It is a crypto advisory firm that seeks to assist companies with blockchain integration, and it also provides sales of certain events that it organizes. Earlier this week, tech industry news site Computer Reseller News reported that the company had been sued by Oracle in the Northern District of California based on charges of trademark infringement.

Essentially, cybersquatting is the act of “registering, trafficking in, or using an Internet domain name with bad faith intent to profit from the goodwill of a trademark belonging to someone else.” (per Wikipedia).

While it hasn’t been established that CryptoOracle is guilty of infringing on Oracles name, it is possible that the company could have leveraged on this to entice people to buy cryptocurrency using the known brand name.

In the complaint filed by Oracle, the tech behemoth allegedly claimed that CryptoOracle’s name was specifically chosen in a bid to “trade on Oracle’s reputation as an innovator and leader within the technology industry, and to evoke among consumers the goodwill that Oracle has built-in its own famous brand.”

According to the report from Computer Reseller News, the CryptoOracle brand was recently featured in a TV segment on popular news medium CNBC. CNBC also reportedly interviewed the company’s chief executive Louis Kerner, it would seem that this publicity caught the attention of the Internet giant.

Oracle went on to try settling the dispute out of court with a cease and desist notice, but Kerner reportedly replied this notice with a completed trademark application for his company’s brand name. Facing no other option, Oracle went on to drag the blockchain firm to court.

Related court filings allegedly state, “While Oracle would otherwise welcome some of the defendants’ endeavors, including events aimed at fostering a community around innovative and curious blockchain-enthusiasts, Oracle cannot tolerate the use of its famous trademark to brand [the] defendants’ business.”

Thus, Oracle is now requesting that a federal judge should force CryptoOracle to rescind its trademark application, take off all related branding from its websites and publicity materials, and change its name entirely

In addition to that, the Internet giant is reportedly laying a claim to some of the profits made over time by CryptoOracle as well. While the possibility of the former request being granted is existent, it is less likely that the court will give Oracle a dime out of CryptoOracle’s profits

Of course, this isn’t to say that oracle has anything against cryptocurrencies or blockchain technology. The company has done its part to embrace the latter.

Back in February, it announced that it would be expanding the functionality of the Oracle Blockchain Platform, its enterprise-grade blockchain infrastructure. Per a press release at the time, Oracle announced that the new capabilities of the platform would help simplify the process of integrating companies IT systems, while also improving the speed of blockchain application development and deployment.

However, as regards Bitcoin trading or other crypto activities, the Internet giant seems to be on the fence.