Someone Is Actually Suing To Keep Using The "Blockbuster" Brand

Last September, when Blockbuster Video filed for bankruptcy protection, NCR, which licenses the video store’s name for its Blockbuster Express DVD kiosks did their best to let customers know that the two businesses are related in name only. But now that the chain has been bought by Dish Network, the Blockbuster name is apparently no longer the scarlet “B” it was just a few months ago.

Dish recently told NCR that it was time to pull the plug on their licensing agreement for the Blockbuster Express kiosks, a move that has led NCR to file a lawsuit.

Per the rules of Bankruptcy Court, new owner Dish does have the right to accept or reject the contracts signed by Blockbuster before the sale. But according to a report in the L.A. Times, NCR says that the trust set up to administer Blockbuster’s intellectual property rights lacks the grounds to end the licensing agreement.

The kiosk company, which currently operates around 9,000 Blockbuster Express machines, says that ending the licensing deal will cause NCR “substantial hardship and irreparable harm.”

NCR sues Blockbuster trust to continue using the chain’s name on kiosks [L.A. Times]

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