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Handbag maker Vuitton sues GoogleTrademark infringement alleged
PARIS, France (AP) -- Louis Vuitton SA is suing Google and its French subsidiary for trademark infringement in the wake of a landmark ruling that could force the popular Internet search engine to change the way it sells advertising. Lawyers for Google and Vuitton, maker of handbags, shoes and other luxury goods, are to attend a preliminary hearing in Paris on November 3, according to a court document obtained Friday by The Associated Press. Vuitton, a division of French luxury goods giant LVMH, filed its suit on August 6. Contacted Friday, neither company would comment on the lawsuit, the third to be filed in French courts against Google's advertising services. When Internet users type in words or phrases in online searches, all search engines bring up links to other Web sites that carry the same terms. But Google also posts links to companies and organizations that have paid to be associated with certain keywords -- even if they are trademarks belonging to somebody else. For example, Google users typing "Bourse des Vols" or "Bourse des Voyages" -- trademarks for two French travel firms -- were offered links to rival companies including low-cost airline EasyJet. The French firms -- Viaticum and Luteciel -- sued Google's French subsidiary for trademark violation and together won euro75,000 (US$89,000) in damages in a court ruling earlier this month. "Google will appeal the decision and we have no further comment to make," Debbie Frost, spokeswoman for the California-based parent company, said Friday. She refused to discuss the Vuitton lawsuit. The 20-page October 13 ruling by the court in the Paris suburb of Nanterre called into question the legality of the search system at the heart of Google's business model. It said that when searches are done on registered trademarks, Google should "find the means to block advertisements by third parties who have no right to these trademarks." Parties to that case said Vuitton's suit would raise many of the same issues. Vuitton spokeswoman Alexandra Mendes-France would not comment. Google, one of the best-known Internet brands, faces a likely wave of litigation from other companies keen to capitalize on the ruling. Telephone payments firm Rentabiliweb has sued Google for allegedly selling its trademark as a keyword to rival company Tel 4 Money. An official at France's Software Protection Agency, which gathers evidence for court hearings on piracy and trademark infringement, said several major companies are preparing cases against Google. The official spoke on condition of anonymity. Copyright 2003 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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