****AltaVista Domain Officially In Compaq's Corral
Newsbytes - August 11, 1998 16:55
%ONLINE %MSP CPQ V%NEWSBYTES P%NBYT
HOUSTON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1998 AUG 11 (NB) -- By Bob Woods, Newsbytes. The two-year legal battle over the "altavista.com" Internet domain, fought between AltaVista Technology Inc. (ATI) and Digital Equipment Corp., now a part of Compaq Computer Corp. [NYSE:CPQ], is officially over. Compaq has confirmed the transfer of the AltaVista trademark and domain to it from ATI, which has a new name and business as a result of the agreement.
Newsbytes first reported on the deal between ATI and Compaq/DEC late last month, when ATI was talking but Compaq was not (Newsbytes, Jul. 28 and 29, 1998). At the time, ATI President Jack Marshall confirmed to Newsbytes that a deal had been struck, but he could not confirm the $3 million to $3.35 million dollar amounts sources quoted in news reports had placed on the deal. Marshall paid $100 for the altavista.com domain in February 1995.
At the time, Compaq would not confirm the deal, but a company official said talks between the two companies were "positive."
In a brief statement on Tuesday, Compaq said that ATI "(sold, transferred, and assigned) all of its rights to the (AltaVista) trademark and domain name to Compaq."
ATI will transfer to Compaq the altavista.com domain within 30 days and notify all third parties of the change to its Internet address.
The deal supersedes all previous agreements between ATI and DEC, which Compaq bought last June.
ATI's legal worries began more than two years ago, when DEC filed trademark infringement charges against ATI (Newsbytes, Nov. 1, 1996 and Mar. 18, 1997). ATI had sold the AltaVista trademark -- a mark it registered in 1994 -- to Digital, yet it obtained rights for certain uses of the trademark. In March 1997, a Massachusetts federal judge issued a preliminary injunction that allowed ATI to continue using the AltaVista trademark in both its corporate name and Web address. But the court order said the Campbell, California-based software firm could not use the trademark "in a way that creates the false impression that ATI's Web site is Digital's AltaVista Search Service." While ATI at the time said it would comply with the court's decision, the company said it would appeal the court's decision.
The spat between Digital and ATI stemmed, in large part, from similar uniform resource locators (URLs), the addressing scheme for the Web. To reach Compaq/Digital's AltaVista, a Web surfer currently has to type altavista.digital.com . ATI's corporate Web site, on the other hand, has a URL of altavista.com .
Overall, Marshall told Newsbytes last month he's very happy about his deal with Compaq/Digital. "We went from enemies to business partners and even friends," he said.
The new business friendship will be cemented as ATI becomes PhotoLoft.com, Marshall told Newsbytes last month. The new PhotoLoft.com business will offer customers a free photo album and multimedia digital imaging storage site on the World Wide Web that will let users store, share and view pictures on the Internet. A free client software package is needed for users to upload the photos and photo albums.
Images can be set up so that anyone can view them, or so that a Web surfer would need a password to see the photos. Greeting cards can be printed and mailed from the pictures as well, officials said.
In addition, the Walt Disney Co., is using PhotoLoft.com to promote its upcoming "A Bug's Life" movie. Disney is taking photos of kids in front of a backdrop from the movie. Those pictures are then being turned into personal Web pages, which can be viewed at the PhotoLoft.com Web site.
As a part of the deal inked between Compaq and PhotoLoft.com, Compaq confirmed on Tuesday that it will provide a link starting in mid-August between the AltaVista search site, specifically the "Services" area of the AltaVista service, and the Web-based photo company. Marshall said last month that the link relationship will run for 18 months.
PhotoLoft.com is at photoloft.com on the Web.
Compaq's main Web site is at compaq.com .
15:46 CST <BR>Reposted 16:31 CST
(19980811/Press Contacts: Kay Wolf Jones, ATI, 408-364-8777; Compaq Computer, 281-514-0484/WIRES ONLINE, LEGAL, BUSINESS/CQALT/PHOTO)
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