Dfinity Foundation has dragged Facebook’s parent company, Meta, to court for using an infinity symbol as its logo.
Was it deliberate? Or, was Facebook – now rebranded to Meta – just too lazy to do its homework and verify if the logo it used for its modified entity was already taken.
Well, it doesn’t matter now, because Mark Zuckerberg and his team at Meta Platforms have just been slapped with a lawsuit alleging that Meta’s looping logo too closely resembles Dfinity’s infinity symbol.
According to multiple reports, the company’s attorneys filed a complaint against Meta for trademark infringement in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California on Friday.
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According to the lawsuit, the logos of Dfinity and Meta are confusingly similar. (Image credit: The Coin Republic)
Dfinity Cries ‘Irreparable Loss’
The lawsuit states that “Dfinity has sustained irreparable loss and will continue to sustain irreparable injury as a result of Meta’s unlawful acts and lacks an adequate legal remedy.”
For its part, the blockchain firm said its trademark “infinity sign” was registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) on October 9, 2018.
The Switzerland-based not-profit organization that develops the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) also believes that association with Meta’s “sordid” history of inadequate user privacy could harm its efforts to attract users to its blockchain platform.
In other words, Dfinity has no desire to be associated with Facebook’s awful reputation.
The Battle For Brand Recognition
Additionally, the lawsuit stated that despite being aware of Dfinity’s mark, Meta chose to pursue its application in some of the same or similar areas where Dfinity had previously secured registration for its mark.
Dfinity claimed that because the color palette is not declared as a characteristic of the mark, Dfinity’s ownership includes color variations.
Meta registered its logo in March 2022, but the blockchain developer asserted that its logo has been used on its website since March 2017.
Facebook Inc. rebranded as Meta in October to reflect its intention to focus on the “metaverse” of virtual reality.
ICP total market cap at $2.86 billion on the daily chart | Source: TradingView.com
Meta’s new logo is defined as a “continuous loop” that mimics both the letter ‘M’ and the infinity sign, “symbolizing the metaverse’s boundless horizons.”
Dfinity contended that Meta “knowingly infringed” on the company’s trademark based on its USPTO registration and demonstrated “willful and wanton contempt for Dfinity’s established and superior rights.”
The Rise And Fall Of ICP Coin
After debuting with a market cap of $57 billion, the ICP coin fell below the $3 billion threshold. ICP is currently trading at $12.80.
“Ethereum Killer” Dfinity is now seeking an injunction against Meta’s use of the mark and unspecified monetary damages.
An infinite logo is now all the rage on Web3. Some say Meta’s logo is not even an infinity symbol. Others say, it looks like a clone.
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Featured image from TechStory, chart from TradingView.com
