Newegg Respectfully Disagrees With Best Buy's Claims To "Geek" Trademark

Last week, we told you about Best Buy sending a cease and desist letter to Newegg.com over its use of the word “geek” on shirts and other marketing materials and Newegg’s ad featuring someone that looks like a Best Buy employee. Well, over the weekend, Newegg posted its response to big blue’s allegations.

Best Buy had claimed that the use of the word “geek” and the use of a power button in Newegg’s “geek on” slogan violated Best Buy’s trademarked logos for its Geek Squad service and its Geek Squad Black Tie Protection upsell.

Newegg responds:

Best Buy neither owns nor has exclusive rights to use the word ‘Geek’, and Best Buy neither owns nor has exclusive rights to use a general, unstylized computer power button icon.

Second, Best Buy had alleged that Newegg’s commercial featuring an ill-informed, “slovenly” electronics store employee in a shirt similar to the ones worn by Best Buy staffers was disparaging, damaging and confusing to customers.

Once again, Newegg fires back:

It is a comedic, tongue-in-cheek take on a commonly understood customer experience, and does not name, identify or focus on any particular retailer, and we believe the actor portraying the salesperson is not ‘slovenly’ in any way.

But Newegg says it doesn’t actually want to offend any Best Buy employees so it has decided to add the following disclaimer (sorry for the all caps):

THIS ADVERTISEMENT PHOTOPLAY IS A WORK OF FICTION. ANY SIMILARITY TO REAL PERSONS (LIVING OR DEAD), BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENTS, PLACES, EVENTS, OR OTHER MATERIAL IS COINCIDENTAL AND UNINTENTIONAL. IT IS SOLELY INTENDED TO PARODY AND DRAW ATTENTION TO ANY BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENTS (BUT NONE IN PARTICULAR) THAT PROVIDE POOR CUSTOMER SERVICE, AND NO INFERENCES SHOULD BE DRAWN ABOUT THE IDENTITY, AFFILIATION OR LOCATION OF ANY PARTIES OR BUSINESSES DEPICTED. NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED IN THE MAKING OF THIS COMMERCIAL.

Our response to Best Buy. Take it from the geeks. [Newegg’s Facebook page]

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