Lindows to become Linspire:

LindowsOS Becomes Linspire

Company announces name change in hopes of ending legal woes.

Scarlet Pruitt, IDG News Service
Wednesday, April 14, 2004

Embattled Linux-based software vendor Lindows.com formally changed the name of its desktop operating system from LindowsOS to "Linspire" this week.

The name change came after a two-year trademark dispute with Microsoft.

The San Diego, California, company says it renamed its OS product in an effort to end Microsoft's international legal attacks.

The Redmond, Washington, software giant has sued Lindows for trademark infringement in several countries over the similarity between the Windows and Lindows names.

Around the World

Despite court victories in the U.S. and other countries, a name change is still necessary to counter Microsoft's strategy of suing Lindows around the world, company Chief Executive Officer Michael Robertson says in a statement.

The two companies are still going head-to-head in the U.S. where Microsoft has applied for an appeal over the denial of its injunction requests.

The Lindows name will still be used in certain instances in the U.S. and as the corporate name, the company says.

For product information and purchasing, however, customers are being directed to a new Linspire.com site.