EU blocks Microsoft from trademarking Skype logo

The General Court of the European Union has prevented Microsoft from registering the Skype name and logo claiming that it might be mistaken for telecommunications company Sky.

Judges at the EU court announced that, "Conceptually, the figurative element conveys no concept, except perhaps that of a cloud."

"[That] would further increase the likelihood of the element 'Sky' being recognised within the word element 'Skype', for clouds are to be found 'in the sky' and thus may readily be associated with the word 'sky'."

This follows an earlier ruling imposed by the High Court in London in 2013 preventing Microsoft from naming its cloud storage service SkyDrive, resulting in the service being renamed 'OneDrive'.

However, a renaming of Skype seems unlikely with a Microsoft spokeswoman saying, "The case was not a legal challenge to Skype's use of the mark, it was only against the registration."

"We're confident that no confusion exists between these brands and services and will appeal. This decision does not require us to alter product names in any way."

This could potentially lead to Sky seeking a licensing fee from Microsoft for continuing to use the Skype name, their success in such a pursuit might not be that unlikely given how tenuous the link was in this latest ruling.