Digital protects Alta Vista name

Digital has filed a lawsuit against a tiny Californian company, Alta Vista Technology (AVT), for infringing on its Alta Vista trademark.

The suit alleges, among other things, that AVT's Web page at www.altavista.com is confusing Internet users and advertisers about the source of Digital's Alta Vista search service, which is found at www.altavista.digital.com.

In March this year, Digital acquired all of AVT's rights to the Alta Vista trademark. Digital subsequently licensed limited and specific uses of it back to the company.

AVT was allowed to keep using Alta Vista as its company name and Internet address, but confusion ensued as thousands of Web surfers kept landing at the AVT site while looking for the Digital search service.

Matters got worse when AVT installed a link to the Digital search engine from its home page and then started selling ads this autumn to take advantage of the accidental traffic.