After the Jack Wolfskin incident, which was by the way a huge PR disaster for Jack Wolfskin, another big corporation wastes its energy and its reputation within the community with law issues concerning a possible trademark issue with ON3P. Scott USA Inc, known for its ski, ski accessories, bikes and other related stuff, is harassing ON3P, an infant Oregon-based ski manufacturer with a cease and desist letter. Scott Andrus, the founder of ON3P has labeled its flagship big mountain model “The Big Scott”, obviously after his first name (and its maybe also a reference to the “Great Scott Bowl“at Alpental, a ski resort in Washington state, US).
Honestly, that is starting to get annoying. Are the current market incumbents really so fearful of tiny, independent ski manufacturers? There is nothing wrong about protecting your intellectual property rights but naming your brand after a common name and then whining about possible trademark issues may be regarded as ‘uncool’. Such a behavior might be regarded as detrimental for the reputation within the skiing community.
Here is the post at the TGR forum by Scott Andrus from ON3P informing possible customers about the issue:
This post is meant to inform anyone who has to date purchased a “Great Scott” ski from ON3P, or those who are considering a future purchase. In late October, ON3P received a cease and desist order from SCOTT USA Ltd., and its affiliates SCOTT Sports SA and SCOTT USA Inc., demanding ON3P immediately cease commercialization and sales of all “Great Scott” branded skis for reasons of trademark infringement.
We are current exploring the legality of the use of “Scott” in the name of our ski “Great Scott” and should reach a decision in the near future.
Once we have reached a decision, I will post an update on the matter.
Scott Andrus
Some gear experts argue that ON3P skis are superior over Scott USA skis anyway. And ON3Ps are definitely more amazing from a design point of view. So it is probably quite good to get the word out about the ever growing number of independent ski manufactures who strife with all their heart and energy to build skis for dedicated skiers.
Update November, 30th, 2009: Scott Andrus from ON3P has now officially renamed the ski to Cease and Desist to avoid any potentially costly disputes.
