Orange and easyMobile go to war over colour

Mobile operator Orange has filed a suit against no-frills newcomer easyMobile, claiming the company is infringing its trademarks.

The suit stems from the easyMobile choice of colour. The operator has followed the easyGroup trademark branding and stuck with orange. That, according to its rival, is an attempt by the Stelios-owned company to 'pass itself off' as Orange and therefore a trademark infringement.

The two mobile companies had been in negotiations for since the upcoming launch of easyMobile was announced, with both companies saying any potential confusion was in neither of their interests. Stelios went as far as to say that he was sure an amicable solution could be reached.

The negotiations haven't proved as fruitful as Haji-Iannou hoped. Orange has announced that the talks failed to resolve the issues and the two operators will see each other in court.

An Orange spokesman said: "After six months of negotiations with easyMobile, we have been unable to secure a commitment from them not to infringe our rights regarding the use of the colour orange. Our brand, and the rights associated with it, are extremely important to us. In the absence of any firm commitment from Easy, we have been left with no choice but to start an action for trademark infringement and 'passing off'."

In an open letter, easyMobile CEO Haji-Iannou said: "I will see them in court. It is our right to use our own corporate colour for which we have become famous during the last 10 years. We have nothing to be afraid of in this court case. They are clearly worried about the competition. I believe their trademarks are invalid and we will attack them in court. Their suggestion that we are trying to "pass off" as them is laughable.

"Not only we will not be "passing off" as them but also we want everyone to know that they are our enemy."

easyMobile has since added a disclaimer to its website distancing itself from any relationship with Orange.

Joel Barry, partner with legal firm Olswang, said that the case could go either way - and that the case will be the first in the UK to see litigation waged over a corporate colour.

Barry said that easyGroup's history of using the colour orange isn't a defence in itself and that the case will come down to whether the shared colour creates confusion.

"As soon as you start jumping the tracks with products, the fact you have a history in that area won't be a defence on its own," he said.

"You have to show there will be some confusion in the marketplace... Given they are two independent big companies with strong identities, easyMobile will say there won't be confusion," Barry said.

He added that with the advent of mobile virtual network operators, such as Virgin Mobile, could, however, lead some people to believe that there may be a joint venture between the two operators. The question of whether the colour creates a "notional link between the two companies" will be key in deciding the outcome, he said.