Nokia wages war on London start-up over “deceptive” branding clash

Lowdownapp, a mobile assistant app, has raised the heckles of Nokia’s fury for naming its location-based service ‘HERE’, mirroring 'Nokia HERE'.

A David and Goliath-esque battle looms as a London-based start-up has been threatened with legal action by Nokia over the use of the word ‘HERE’ in its branding.

Lowdownapp, a mobile assistant app, has raised the heckles of Nokia’s fury for naming its location-based service ‘HERE’, mirroring Nokia HERE, a similar service.

A letter from Nokia to Lowdownapp read: “Your use of the HERE sign is likely to deceive members of the relevant public such that they will believe your business is connected with or part of our client’s business, when that is not the case.

“This amounts to a misrepresentation that will cause damage to our client’s goodwill in the UK and amounts to passing off.”

Nokia has given the start-up until 10 February to rebrand, according to the BBC.

David Senior, chief executive of Lowdownapp, responded by calling the demands “ludicrous”.

“People say, ‘I’m here,’ to announce their arrival, which is why we have it as a service. As a small start-up trying to deliver value to users we don’t think a multi-billion dollar company will be affected by this,” he said.

“Life is hard enough without Goliaths squashing Davids, maybe they should focus on creating a better mapping service than Google or Apple than squishing a minuscule business.”

Lowdownapp was founded in 2013 in London.

Subscribe to get your daily business insights

Whitepapers

US Mobile Streaming Behavior
Whitepaper | Mobile

US Mobile Streaming Behavior

5y

US Mobile Streaming Behavior

Streaming has become a staple of US media-viewing habits. Streaming video, however, still comes with a variety of pesky frustrations that viewers are ...

View resource
Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics for Media Groups
Whitepaper | Analyzing Customer Data

Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics for Media Groups

5y

Winning the Data Game: Digital Analytics Tactics f...

Data is the lifeblood of so many companies today. You need more of it, all of which at higher quality, and all the meanwhile being compliant with data...

View resource
Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its people
Whitepaper | Digital Marketing

Learning to win the talent war: how digital marketing can develop its peopl...

2y

Learning to win the talent war: how digital market...

This report documents the findings of a Fireside chat held by ClickZ in the first quarter of 2022. It provides expert insight on how companies can ret...

View resource
Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Experience Economy
Report | Digital Transformation

Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Experience Economy

1m

Engagement To Empowerment - Winning in Today's Exp...

Customers decide fast, influenced by only 2.5 touchpoints – globally! Make sure your brand shines in those critical moments. Read More...

View resource