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Indiana Intellectual Property Blog

~ Trademark and Copyright Law Updates in Indiana

Indiana Intellectual Property Blog

Category Archives: Bloggers

Trial Scheduled for Indiana’s First Keyword Advertising Case

09 Thursday May 2013

Posted by Kenan Farrell in Bloggers, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Social Media, Tech Developments, Trademark

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Angie's List, Common Law Unfair Competition, Keyword Advertising, Litigation Update, Request for Preliminary and Permanent Injunctive Relief, Sarah Evans Barker, Tim A. Baker, Trade Disparagement, Trademark Dilution, Trademark Infringement, Unfair Competition, Unjust Enrichment

Indiana’s first keyword advertising case is now set for trial. However, don’t hold your breath if you’re waiting for an answer to whether the purchase and use of a competitor’s trademark in keyword advertising is trademark infringement. The Angie’s List/ServiceMagic trial won’t take place for over a year.

On May 6, a Scheduling Order set a bench trial for October 6, 2014 (at 9:30 AM in Room #216, United States Courthouse, 46 E. Ohio Street, Indianapolis, Indiana before Judge Sarah Evans Barker). A settlement conference was held  between the parties in February 2013 but no settlement was reached. Based on the importance of this question to the parties involved, I expect this case to go to trial, however long that may take.

In the meantime, you can review the Answer to Complaint and Answer to Counterclaims below. Stay tuned for updates.

DEFENDANT SERVICEMAGIC, INC.’S ANSWER, AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSES AND COUNTERCLAIMS:

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ANGIE’S LIST’S ANSWER TO SERVICEMAGIC’S COUNTERCLAIMS:

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Angie’s List v. ServiceMagic – Answers and Counterclaims Filed

09 Tuesday Oct 2012

Posted by Kenan Farrell in Bloggers, Branding, Indiana, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Southern District of Indiana, Trademark

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Angie's List, Keyword Advertising, Litigation Update, ServiceMagic

There are a few updates in Indiana’s first keyword advertising case, Angie’s List v. ServiceMagic. The lawsuit is still in the early stages, with Answers and Counterclaims being filed. An Initial Pretrial Conference is set for 10/12/2012 so stay tuned for updates.

ServiceMagic Answer, Affirmative Defenses and Counterclaims:

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Angie’s List Answer to Counterclaims:

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Stories from the Week that Was – 7/22/12-7/28/12

28 Saturday Jul 2012

Posted by Kenan Farrell in Bloggers, Copyright, Indiana, Social Media, Stories from the Week that Was, Trademark

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BitTorrent, Drones

Another quiet week spent in Portland, Oregon. Here are the top stories I followed this week:

Jack Daniel’s Sends the Most Polite Cease-and-Desist Letter Ever

The changing landscape of Internet sweepstakes regulations

Pakistan spy agency chief to tell CIA: End drone strikes; ID targets for us to attack

Copyright troll: $10,000 sanctions upheld by appeals court are “bulls**t”

If you’ve got a top intellectual property or technology story from last week, please leave a comment below.

Indiana Court Upholds Social Media Ban for Sex Offenders

25 Monday Jun 2012

Posted by Kenan Farrell in Bloggers, Indiana, Legislation, Litigation, Social Media, Southern District of Indiana

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Litigation Update, Mark J. Dinsmore, Tanya Walton Pratt

A recent ruling from the Southern District of Indiana is making news around the country. Despite a challenge by the ACLU, an Indiana law that bans sex offenders from various social media sites has been upheld. Indiana’s law is similar to laws being challenged in other states. The ACLU has promised an appeal to this ruling, so stay tuned for more.

A national civil rights group said Sunday it would appeal a federal judge’s decision to uphold an Indiana law that bans registered sex offenders from accessing Facebook and other social networking sites used by children.

On Friday, Judge Tanya Walton Pratt said in an 18-page order that the state has a strong interest in protecting children and that the rest of the Internet remains open to those who have been convicted.

“Social networking, chat rooms, and instant messaging programs have effectively created a ‘virtual playground’ for sexual predators to lurk,” Pratt wrote in the ruling, citing a 2006 report by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that found that one in seven youths had received online sexual solicitations and one in three had been exposed to unwanted sexual material online. ABC News

Below are the ruling and original complaint:

DOE v. PROSECUTOR, MARION COUNTY, INDIANA
1:12-cv-00062-TWP-MJD

View this document on Scribd
View this document on Scribd

Indiana Trademark Litigation Update – Angie’s List v. ServiceMagic

07 Thursday Jun 2012

Posted by Kenan Farrell in Bloggers, Branding, Indiana, Indianapolis, Intellectual Property, Litigation, Social Media, Southern District of Indiana, Tech Developments, Trademark

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Angie's List, Common Law Unfair Competition, Keyword Advertising, Litigation Update, Request for Preliminary and Permanent Injunctive Relief, Sarah Evans Barker, Tim A. Baker, Trade Disparagement, Trademark Dilution, Trademark Infringement, Unfair Competition, Unjust Enrichment

Indiana finally has its own keyword advertising case!

Local internet powerhouse Angie’s List accuses ServiceMagic of using the “Angie’s List” trademark as a keyword in some of its Google AdWords sponsored link advertisements. While several courts around the country have ruled on this issue, in Indiana it is still undetermined whether the purchase and use of a competitor’s trademark in keyword advertising is trademark infringement.

For those unfamiliar with keyword advertising, see the image below. ServiceMagic pays Google to appear in the “Ads related to” box at the top of the search results for the term “Angie’s List,” directly below Angie’s List’s official site. Big companies hate this practice and small competitors love it. Google really loves it, because advertising is where Google gets a big chunk of their revenue. We’ll soon find out what the Southern District of Indiana, via Judge Sarah Evans Barker, thinks about it.

This is no David and Goliath story either. ServiceMagic’s parent company IAC owns many major web products, including Ask.com, Match.com and Vimeo.

Stay tuned for updates as the case proceeds.

Angie’s List Inc. v. Servicemagic Inc.

Court Case Number:    1:12-cv-00755-SEB-TAB
File Date:    Friday, June 01, 2012
Plaintiff:     Angie’s List Inc.
Plaintiff Counsel:     George A. Gasper, Michael A. Wukmer, Bradley M. Stohry of Ice Miller LLP
Defendant:     ServiceMagic Inc.
Cause:    Trademark Infringement, Unfair Competition, Trade Disparagement, Trademark Dilution, Common Law Unfair Competition, Unjust Enrichment, Request for Preliminary and Permanent Injunctive Relief
Court:    Southern District of Indiana
Judge:     Judge Sarah Evans Barker
Referred To: Magistrate Judge Tim A. Baker

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