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Piaggio .... what the ...?!

janguzzi

janguzzi

Tuned and Synch'ed
Joined
Jun 22, 2011
Messages
69
Location
Germany
Did you know that the Piaggio Group is currently forcing forum and website owners and professional stores to remove the word Guzzi from their names?
This is currently happening in Germany. Latest victim HMB Guzzi.
This is done by lawyers hired by the Piaggio Group.
 
:think: Any more information to back up this claim? I don't believe the word Guzzi can be copyrighted as it is a surname. As in Carlo Guzzi, one of our Founding Fathers.
Also the HMB Guzzi website is still up and running under that name.
 
HMB Guzzi changed the name to HMB Moto (will be online soon). One of the largest existing Guzzi forum, the German guzzi-forum.de collected money and hired a lawyer to fight against this. They can keep their name for at least another year.
 
I have read the first comments like "I will never buy a new Guzzi again. Piaggio can keep their V100".
I am really curious what will happen in the US ... Guzzitech, Wildguzzi ... this is so stupid.
This is not how you treat your fanbase and all the folks which kept the brand alive over decades.
 
I haven't said anything yet, but I too was lobbed a 'Cease and Desist' email from them. My trademark attorney says I have every right to the name, and that we've been here for well over two decades. I'm not going to hand over 20+ years of my time and work (for free), which they want me to do. It's costing me a big handful of $. I immediately cancelled my V100. I had to give the money to my attorney to keep this alive.
 
They are getting as bad as BMW. They made all the clubs remove the Rondell from their logos. They can still have the BMW in their name such as the BMW Motorcycle Owners. I wonder if they will go after the Aprilla forum?
 
It’s a dumb idea from Piaggio… It’s free advertising for them and most of the businesses they are fighting take care of all the older models the dealership doesn’t even want to touch or don’t want to do the modification the customer wants!

Some Business owner could just add legally another middle name... Guzzi...
Couldn’t argue with that LOL
 
Well, if Todd would’ve gotten his I might have been in the market for a naked conversion on it
 
One of the administrators of the German Guzzi forum wrote:
The German language forum that I am involved in got hit too. We got a lawyer involved, and made the point that the forum is not commercial, and that using a trade name for non-commercial purposes is not illegal in Germany. €2.000 later, things have gone quiet, and we are assuming we are back off the radar. Mike at HMB is, however, commercial, but has no official connection to Moto Guzzi. He chose to take the route of least resistance, and change his domain name.

There is a lawyers practice that has been contracted by Piaggio to search out instances of "Guzzi" on the interweb, contact them, and issue "cease and desist" demands. They first contacted the service provider for the above-mentioned forum, and then the chief admin of the forum whose name is on the bottom line of the forum. I gather Mike at HMB was contacted by the same bunch of lawyers.
Click to expand...
 
What an upsetting situation, I really don't understand the logic behind this...
If I ran a forum I'd just change my middle name on the passport, then no one couldn't tell me I can't use my name as a forum name, f u... It'd be called Mindaugas Guzzi Pranckus! Sounds legit, eh? 🤣
 
Mindis said:
What an upsetting situation, I really don't understand the logic behind this...
If I ran a forum I'd just change my middle name on the passport, then no one couldn't tell me I can't use my name as a forum name, f u... It'd be called Mindaugas Guzzi Pranckus! Sounds legit, eh? 🤣
Click to expand...
I like the way you think.
 
Legal name(s) won't hold any weight against a trademark. Wish it worked that way, but it doesn't.
 
Hmm.

Why do you all find it so egregious for a company to protect their trademark? If you used the work "Coke" in a commercial site, I'm sure the CocaCola Corporation would be hot to send a cease and desist letter as well.

Intellectual property is just that, property.

I'm sure Todd would take offense at the use of "GTM" being used by some other custom motorcycle manufacturer.

Step back from all your righteous indignation and look at it from their viewpoint and you will see that what they are doing is nothing bad nor wrong. They are trying to prevent others from using their corporate id. Nothing more.

I understand this completely.
 
It's just the use of Guzzi. It's a surname. How can that have a copyright. Nobody is using their Eagle emblem or the full name Moto Guzzi. What if Todd's name was Todd Guzzi? Would he be banned from using the name GuzziTech?
Apparently 2,856 people in Italy have the last name Guzzi. I guess none of them can open a business in their own name either!:fubar:
 
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You’re absolutely correct! They have to legal right to do what they’re doing!
I’m just questioning if it’s the right thing to do! Morally, from a public relations standpoint, and historically speaking as being a Guzzi family..
And financially...
It’s hard to put this crumbly feeling in my tummy in words...
 
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