Sony has been a long-known leader in technology, but even the biggest players can get it wrong. The Japanese company is preparing for a launch of next-generation technology, but it may not be the smoothest launch – since it was recently revealed they don’t own the trademark for their new product.
Sony Corporation brought in approximately $76 billion in the last financial year. While many may look to their popular divisions like electronics or music and pictures, it may come as a shock that their largest haul comes from video games. But as the company looks to release their new gaming hardware, trouble looms in one of the world’s largest markets because someone beat them to the trademark office.
Naming conventions
Nearly $21 billion comes from services and products associated with the Sony PlayStation division. Their consoles have come in numbered iterations, and they are now on the PS5. Unfortunately for them, it turns out their claim to the name is up for contention in India.
Dangerous games
An individual trademarked the name PS5 in October of last year, while Sony didn’t submit paperwork until February of this year. While this may only serve to slow them down, leaving a market the size of India in question during a global release can be a cause for concern.
Establishing a trademark is essential for doing business, and it’s often first-come, first-serve. While filing early in one country can get you protections, there’s a whole world of business out there. And it won’t stand by while you get the proper footing everywhere you intend to operate.
