QWERTY: Audi Claims Letter Q, Sues Qoros
The Chinese-Israeli co-production Qoros has not sold a single car yet, but it already finds itself in the legal hot seat. Via a temporary injunction of a court in Hamburg, Germany, Audi precluded Qoros from using – the letter Q.
Qoros 3 Sedan
„The letter Q is a protected part of our brand portfolio,“ Audi is quoted in Der Kfz-Betrieb. „If another car maker uses the letter Q for a name plate, then this affects us, of course.”
This, also of course, should trigger alarm bells at Nissan’s Infiniti. The luxury marque decided to Q-up all its cars behind the letter Q. However, Infiniti told Kfz-Betrieb that there are no complaints pending – yet . Or maybe, Audi does not want to get legally entangled with Nissan, but hopes that a Chinese manufacturer is automatically guilty of infringement. However, our legal researcher Chocolatedeath has found evidence of a prior settlement that shows Infiniti as the infringed party.
Audi Q7
German media report that the legal bluster is not about branded letters, but meant to “keep Qoros down,” as Die Welt writes. “Is Audi scared of Chinese Qoros?” asks Focus.
Qoros dropped the Q and calls its new car the “Qoros 3 Sedan.” Which could ring alarm bells at BMW …. But then, if I’d be Audi, I would be careful. The best-known Qs in China are the two Qs of the Chery QQ. Chery owns half of Qoros. Audi has a lot to lose in China …
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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Breaking news: I just bought Oldsmobile from GM for 100 bucks including all past trademark names. Each car will be slightly larger inside then their competition. My new car line will be ultra lux-premium and consist of the follow names. o9= full size sedan o7= mid size sedan o5 compact sedan o3=mini car o8 full size CUV 06 mid size CUV o4 compact CUV o2 compact coupe I also will advertise on cheerios and oreo packages Anyone interested in designing them for me.
Uh-Oh. The Weather Channel is now calling the latest winter storm "Q" (they couldn't spell Quetzalcoatl). I wonder if they'll get sued too.