Despite noise from Ford, Model E is already promoting its service, which caters to those who can afford to pay a hefty monthly fee to lease, license, insure and maintain custom-made automobiles. The automobiles will not be called Model E, but rather will be customized versions of existing cars. The startup company offers free online educational courses and peddles goods and services to college students. The only exception is in when a famous trademark is in play. With the advent of Internet domain names, new theories had to be devised about infringement of a product name by a Web site name, and the details are still being hammered out.
Some basic principles remain, however.
Apparently, nobody told ancient institutions Ford and Harvard about the Web's nuances. Ford is arguing that because Model T is the name of the most famous vehicle in history, Model E is likely to mislead prospective purchasers as to a possible connection between the two companies. Although the irate automaker is demanding that Model E pull off the highway, it looks like a classic case of road rage to most industry onlookers. The names are different. An online car service called Model T might be trading on Ford's reputation, but Model E is a horse of different color.