Oops, I knew we forgot something
Microsoft finally gets around to registering Excel as a trademark - 19 years too late.
Microsoft released Excel in 1985; but until April, Excel was not a trademarked name. Because “it doesn’t hurt to take it one step further”, Microsoft decided to file for the trademark. Until that point, Excel was protected under a common law trademark. A common law trademark occurs when a name “becomes associated in the mind of the public with the particular good or service.”
But, this follows a new product release called TurboExcel. TurboExcel allows users to convert from Excel format to a format useable on Linux systems. Obviously, this is a problem for Microsoft.
Microsoft spokesperson Stacy Drake claims that Microsoft has “approached” several companies about infringing on the Excel trademark, but declined to name them.
While you’re here, take a look at this list from Microsoft showing what they have trademarked. Notice two glaring ommissions: Office and Word. Although, these are presumably covered under common law as well.