Microsoft has reportedly agreed to
change the name of its cloud storage
service SkyDrive, after a UK court
recently ruled that the name infringed
on a trademark owned by British Sky
Broadcasting Group (BSkyB).
Microsoft and BSkyB reached a
settlement on Wednesday following
which Microsoft has agreed that it will
not appeal against the court ruling
and that BSkyB will allow Microsoft to
continue using the brand "for a
reasonable period of time to allow for
an orderly transition to a new brand,"
as noted by The Verge.
The settlement agreement also
features financial and other terms but
the companies did not disclose any
details due to confidentiality clauses.
A Microsoft spokesperson also
confirmed the name change in a
statement to the website saying,"We're
glad to have resolution of this naming
dispute, and will continue to deliver the
great service our hundreds of millions
of customers expect, providing the best
way to always have your files with
you."
In June, a UK court had ruled the
SkyDrive product name infringes on
BSkyB's Sky trademark, under which it
operates satellite TV services and even
runs satellite television channels like
Sky Sports and Sky News. The ruling
was effective across the European
Union. Sky also offers an Internet
storage service similar to Microsoft's
SkyDrive.
It's worth pointing out that Microsoft
had to change the name of the design
philosophy employed in the user
interface of Windows Phone and
Windows 8 after a similar dispute, last
year. It initially used to call the
interface, Metro UI, but then changed
it to Modern UI, after a trademark
dispute with Europe based Metro AG
, in August 2012.
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