Kraftwerk's Ralf Hütter Sues Electronics Company for Trademark Infringement

BY Josiah HughesPublished Mar 10, 2015

When it comes to protecting the legacy of Kraftwerk, one start-up company has learned that it's not all computer love. In fact, the head honchos as eZelleron, Inc. just might have to bust out their pocket calculators and pay up after the iconic band filed a trademark infringement lawsuit.

Ralf Hütter, the band's frontman, has filed suit against the electronic company after they named their new device "KRAFTWERK." While it's technically just the German word for "power station," Hütter owns the trademark of the word for his band.

The KRAFTWERK is a mobile device charger that has already raised over $1.5 million on Kickstarter. Now that the product is available for pre-order, Hütter has stepped in.

A legal statement [via The Hollywood Reporter] explains that the similar titles are likely to cause confusion. "Defendant is taking advance orders for the KRAFTWERK charging device," the complaint reads. "Therefore, consumers are likely to assume that there is a connection, association, or relationship between the famous electronic Music band and a charger for portable musical-playing devices."

It's worth noting that eZelleron, Inc. is also based in Germany. Whether or not Hütter can win a trademark lawsuit for a regular German word is yet to be seen.

 

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