Google drops Gmail name in UK

Internet search engine Google dropped the Gmail name from its email services in Ireland and the UK today following a long-running row over ownership of the trademark.

The US giant bowed to the demands of a British company just a fraction of its size and changed the name of its email service to Google Mail on this side of the Atlantic.

The dispute began at the start of April last year when Google launched Gmail in the UK, signing up scores of web users because of the large amounts of free data storage it made available.

But its right to call the service Gmail was strongly opposed by London-based firm Independent International Investment Research (IIIR), which claimed to own the trademark.

In a statement today, IIIR emphasised that its own web-based email system called G-mail was running two years before Google launched its service.

Despite being a relative minnow with a market value of around £3m, IIIR engaged Google in talks over the issue which it claimed was confusing would-be clients.

However, Google insisted that the name change was taken voluntarily and it believed the claims by IIIR were “tenuous”.

“This company has been very focused on a monetary settlement,” Google said in a statement.

“We went back and forth trying to settle on reasonable terms, but the sums of money this company is demanding are exorbitant.”

IIIR, which specialises in providing research on international companies and currencies for clients including investment banks, said it was “gratified” that the issue had been resolved without litigation.

It now hoped that Google would return to the negotiating table and agree a settlement.

In its response, Google said it was still working with the courts and trademark office to ensure it could use the Gmail name.

“This could take years to resolve, and in the meantime, we want our users to have an email address and experience they can rely on,” Google said.

Google was developed by students Larry Page and Sergey Brin from their dorm room at Stanford University, California, and now employs around 4,180 staff.

Its technology is licensed to more than 100 companies and the firm also has a news site and shopping service known as Froogle.