Deutsche Telekom / T-Mobile demands Engadget Mobile discontinue using the color magenta
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Dave @ Mar 31st 2008 4:37PM
Wow and T-Mo thought the US hated them now...
happy_penguin @ Mar 31st 2008 4:42PM
I think they're a bunch of something that rhymes with Bundt..... cakes.
James @ Mar 31st 2008 4:47PM
WTF?? Owning a color??? Whats next, Leprechauns sueing over the color green??
CoolBradG @ Mar 31st 2008 4:49PM
Team Engadget.
jonathan @ Mar 31st 2008 4:51PM
So does this mean that no one can use the color magenta in their logo. Are these twits actually serious. Really what the hell.
I would send them a note back telling the "F you rude note to follow"
Really they cannot have been more wasteful with paper and money than this.
If T Mobile existed in Canada I would boycott them just on the grounds of ignorance.
farfisa @ Mar 31st 2008 4:51PM
I'm going to call you "EngadgeT-Mobile" from now on.
Mehul Kamdar @ Mar 31st 2008 4:58PM
This must be a result of T Mobile's top brass not having much work to do. Surely, they need to justify their miserable existence when they cannot sell more connections or offer half decent service!
What a bunch of clowns, behaving like a new Gestapo out to find fault in whoever they regard as a problem!
LordObento @ Mar 31st 2008 4:58PM
Patented/Trademarked colors? Wouldn't Crayola or Sherman Williams have this claimed?
john @ Apr 1st 2008 2:39PM
Crayola does have trademarked colors.
Zach G. @ Mar 31st 2008 5:05PM
I think to allow for a great opportunity to outline and implement the necessary "phase-out procedures," Engadget Mobil should change the grey background behind this white content pane to magenta.
youngcalihottie @ Apr 1st 2008 9:17PM
i guess they liked your idea lol
AlphaTeam @ Mar 31st 2008 5:08PM
Like I posted in the other blog, but the T-Mobile color is not the same as the one Engadget uses.
Shlomtzion! @ Mar 31st 2008 5:28PM
Well, If we didn't think that those corporates are evil enough?!
BTW: it's stupid of them since they should encourge the use of their style logo in a cell site especially ! - hhmmmm contex will -> go auto to T-Mobile which is good that people will keep their logo in mind... .also they should say thanks (as if you took it from them..) just for the gesture!
PEZ @ Mar 31st 2008 5:39PM
Magenta is fugly anyway. Shouldn't it be ok that they are the only ones that want to use the shitty color? EngMo should have a content for the new logo colors. Yippee.
aliendude5300 @ Mar 31st 2008 5:40PM
This is ridiculous. Nobody should be allowed to own part of the color spectrum!
siliconshark @ Mar 31st 2008 5:52PM
Pathetic - you are doing them a favor by associating magenta with mobile
JoshG @ Mar 31st 2008 6:23PM
I like the magenta highlighting.
chazyak @ Mar 31st 2008 6:31PM
Not taking sides here, but, interesting that for the purposed of this article, you've actually darkened the T-Mobile color, to make it look different than your own. A quick trip to the T-Mobile website shows that it's pretty much an exact match...
GoodWill8675 @ Mar 31st 2008 6:38PM
Hahah thats cute!
T-Mobs is just upset because there is rarely anything posted about them!
Jake @ Mar 31st 2008 6:55PM
I think this is a well crafted April Fools joke.
Think about it, its already April 1st in Germany... (albiet, its only 1AM there...)
StephenD @ Mar 31st 2008 7:04PM
I'm inclined to agree that the Magenta should be removed. It's a bit gaudy.
Perhaps Orange would look nicer..?
Gib @ Mar 31st 2008 7:51PM
Haha! Good point
ecco6t9 @ Mar 31st 2008 7:08PM
So a 4th rate company can tell a website what to do?
Donald @ Mar 31st 2008 7:23PM
In the words of someone over at the mothership: "What a bunch of Deutsche-bags."
ronald.raygun @ Mar 31st 2008 7:41PM
+ 1 to you sir, thanks for the chuckle
Alex @ Mar 31st 2008 8:27PM
Just to spite them, I would change my logo to magenta as well. ha!
Sam Gibbs @ Mar 31st 2008 8:27PM
Maybe EngMob should start it's own MVNO? That way there'd be no confusion ;)
Ex T-mob @ Mar 31st 2008 9:24PM
Yeah but if you look at T-Mob's legal section it does say that the color is trademarked.
Nik @ Mar 31st 2008 9:53PM
Ahhh engadget mobile i am sooo confused, i clicked on the site and saw magenta and thot i was on t-mobiles site. :sigh: /sarcasm
alex @ Mar 31st 2008 11:24PM
Magenta is a printing process colour, and isn't made easily with RGB.
Your colours are actually significantly different.
Based on the logos posted at this article:
Tmobile 196 21 132
Engadget 236 0 139
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magenta
Dave @ Mar 31st 2008 11:26PM
Funny part is... this article made me review my t mobile contract and I found $60 in fat on it. Magenta must be worth something to them because it cost them $720 a year from me. I'm ready to jump ship anyway, they need more powerful business class phones.
DBrim @ Apr 1st 2008 12:31AM
This just in: IBM sues Engadget Classic for the use of the color blue.
Steve T @ Apr 1st 2008 4:23AM
Seriously, Pepsi tried this shite over the color blue some years back.
YES they did get the piss slapped out of them in court; why do you ask?
To quote Kim Deal, "It was so hush-hush".
And no, it was completely unrelated to the soda/brand/flavor Pepsi Blue.
Steve T @ Apr 1st 2008 4:23AM
Seriously, Pepsi tried this shite over the color blue some years back.
YES they did get the piss slapped out of them in court; why do you ask?
To quote Kim Deal, "It was so hush-hush".
And no, it was completely unrelated to the soda/brand/flavor Pepsi Blue.
John Maguire @ Apr 1st 2008 5:55AM
Phonescoop just switched to the same color.
WTF @ Apr 1st 2008 9:43AM
LOL yeah so did PhoneArena. lol. I was under the impression that the regular color Magenta could not be trademarked becuase it was not unique and was considered generic IAW trademark laws. But you could trademark a variation of it and they would have to prove that the engadget logo is the same variation as the t-mobile logo, which as someone has already pointed out, isnt the same. I would say, and IMHO, DT doesnt really have a legal leg to stand on in this case since they are merely stating violation of the trademark based on the color and not the color variation.
Matt @ Apr 1st 2008 9:55AM
I call for all bloggers to change their blogs to magenta. This will tie up T-Mobile's hands for a while. I wonder how many people will confuse a single blog for THE ONLY NON-3G carrier.
Maciek
www.symbiosis60.com
NealDavid @ Apr 1st 2008 11:00AM
ROFL since when is a color a trademark? I could see if you were using the same "T" along with the color but by itself, please. Your color isn't even identical to their's so what are they crying over? Makes me want to go to all my web sites that I have up and change the color scheme to Magenta and see if they want to come crying at me too considering I do advertise electronics! You would think they would have better things to do like finding ways to improve their service rather then crying over a color. Statement of fact: I've used T-Mobile where I live and found their service was not up to standards with dropped calls and no signals. Sprint and Verizon have them beat hands down. Maybe thats why they are becoming picky over a color.
jeremy @ Apr 1st 2008 11:59AM
the ONLY thing t-mobile has going for them is that they are gsm. everything else about the company sucks.
Here @ Apr 1st 2008 12:25PM
Nice, love the new Logo!
Matt @ Apr 1st 2008 12:41PM
Ryan/you guys... I just got to the site this morning and now I'm LMFAO!!!! Hahahaha... You guys are so evil; it's brilliant! I was wondering how you were going to repond to those Deutschebags.
Hi five!
James @ Apr 1st 2008 1:02PM
HAHAHA!!! LOL! Nice background and logo!!
Firtch @ Apr 1st 2008 1:17PM
Style Guide at http://brand.t-mobile.com/TMobileBrandPortal/Client/#publicAssetList
Official T-Mobile Style Guide colors:
Magenta Custom Spot Color *
PMS: Process Magenta
CMYK: 0, 100, 0, 0
RGB: 226 , 0, 116
HEX: E20074
Gray
PMS: Cool Gray 7C
CMYK: 0, 0, 0, 47
RGB: 153 , 153 , 153
HEX: 999999
adub @ Apr 1st 2008 1:49PM
I did actually confuse the site title- and thought it was some sort of T-Mobile sponsored thing....
stevenherrejon @ Apr 1st 2008 2:32PM
I have T Mobile and ya we all knowabout the pinkish color but who cares if Engadget ( you nice guys ) uses it. T Mobiles stupid to bark about that. Engadget and other sites are giving them some uhhhhh PUBLICITY and the Pink guys' faces are turning red? ! ? I dont get it. Lighten up T Mobile, you attract the " young " customer here in America but you're acting like Jamie Lee Curtis. ( old ) ( hope somebody got that one ! ) laters.
Hatman110 @ Apr 1st 2008 4:01PM
I personally feel that Deutsche Telekom is only looking out for its best business interests just as any company would. As was stated clearly in the letter, the goal of their communication with Engadget is, "to avoid any possible confusion with the consumer regarding the origin or the sponsorship of [the] blog." Since to my knowledge Engadget does not share any business relations with Deutsche Telekom / T-Mobile is seems only logical that any semblance of such a relationship such be avoided, especially on a site where user comments may go largely unregulated. Since the business relationship (or lack thereof) may not be clear to a user who reads or posts on this site, I believe Deutsche Telekom does have every right to engage in communication with Endadget. The medium used to engage in such communications was appropriate and respectful to both parties involved.
trooth @ Apr 1st 2008 5:09PM
he le er is also rade marked as well. You are all idio s for no removing i from your keyboard.
youngcalihottie @ Apr 1st 2008 9:17PM
lol im glad i removed i from mine! ha way hey can' sue me oo!
NintendoWFC.com @ Apr 2nd 2008 3:25AM
"NINTENDOWFC.COM SUPPORTS SETTING MAGENTA FREE
Supports Websites Worldwide by Changing Color Scheme to Magenta
LOS ANGELES, Calif., April 1, 2008 Today the Nintendowfc.com website received a new magenta color scheme. Websites worldwide are converting to magenta today to advocate EngadgetMobile.com\'s use of the color, in response to a letter they received last week from T-Mobile\'s parent company, Deutsche Telekom, asking them to discontinue their use of such.
(more)"
To read the full Press Release, visit: http://www.nintendowfc.com/press/?release=20080401a&rby=8112
We are happy to support Engadget!
ka @ Apr 2nd 2008 3:39AM
They also own the letter "T" (at least they think so). But I'll own them! I'll trademark all other letters, then they can see how to write leters etc ...