Quote:
Originally Posted by whydidnt
Trademark isn't about making sure others don't use your logo, colors, etc. It's to make sure other's don't use those to confuse a consumer into buying one product thinking it's another.
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Whydidnt is right on about the purpose of trademarks, but there is one other issue here that I believe causes companies to do things like this, even when they're not totally reasonable. That is the requirement that they vigorously protect their trademark. If someone else violates their trademark in a more obvious manner and T-Mobile wishes to enforce it, then they must be able to show that they have not been casual about allowing others to use it previously.
Of course, few people would think that anyone could confuse these two marks, but in the trademark world, T-Mobile is better off to pursue every possible claim and lose many of them than to not pursue them at all. Even if a court rules against T-Mobile, then they have still protected their trademark so the goal is achieved. The natural tendency, then, is to pursue everything that is even remotely related and let the courts decide which ones aren't actual violations.