IBM faces e-challenge

IBM could face a legal battle over the use of its e-business logo.

A two-person consultancy, called E Technology Associates, claim they have the trademark on the stylised "e". IBM has been using the symbol in its marketing campaign since last autumn.

E Technology, based in New York and Paris, claim to have applied for the trademark four months before IBM.

Peter Page, of law firm Bird & Bird, says the partners will only be successful in Europe if they can prove that they have a prior reputation for using the trademark and that IBM's use has caused confusion or misrepresentation. "You can't just say, 'don't we have something similar on a packet somewhere?' You need to have established a reputation in that locality," he said.

In a similar case, Microsoft was recently forced into a $5m out-of-court settlement by a lone Chicago businessman who held the rights to the name Internet Explorer.