We've been following the case of ASUS and its alleged theft of the Hasbro Transformer trademark for its 'Transformer Prime' tablet since December and, finally, three months later, US courts have heard both sides of the argument and decided to rule in favour of ASUS, refusing to grant a preliminary injunction.
A full hearing will take place in the near future, however, in the initial ruling, the Judge stated "There is nothing gimmicky about the Eee Pad Transformer or the Eee Pad Transformer Prime, nor can it be said that there is any similarity in the use or function between Hasbro and ASUS's products." The court also decided that ASUS's argument was strengthened by the fact that its tablet did indeed 'transform' as it connected and disconnected from its keyboard dock.
This one seems like a loss for Optimus Prime and his Autobots, as, whilst Hasbro is adamant that it will continue to fight for a ban, ASUS has already looked to re-brand upcoming products with less obvious names such as the 'Transformer Pad Infinity', making the entire argument now seem kind of pointless, as any victory on Hasbro's part will no doubt be an empty one.
Most interestingly, during the case, figures of Eee Pad Transformer Prime sales for the US were unveiled, showing the tablet to have only received 2,000 pre-orders and two-month orders for 80,000 stock. When we look at iPad 3 sales, which reached three million in three days, it's clear that ASUS has a long way to go, though, given the early release of the Prime in relation to the original Transformer tablet, the premium costing and a roadmap already in-place for a 1080p model, there are also, clearly, quite a few ways in which the firm can improve its marketing strategy.
We wonder if Hasbro will team up with Autodesk next, in order to bring an injunction against LG's Optimus 3D Max smartphone.
