Josh Gerben, a trademark attorney at Gerben Intellectual Property, has expressed concerns that the company formerly known as Twitter could face substantial litigation costs of more than $100 million due to its recent rebrand to "X." In a post on July 25, Gerben pre dictated that trademark infringement lawsuits against the new name could emerge in US courts in the coming weeks, and there could be significant legal challenges on an international scale over time. This is because several US companies, including Microsoft and Meta, already hold simi lar "X" trademarks for various products and services, potentially providing grounds for legal action against the rebranded company.
Gerben finds it unprecedented for the company to abandon the valuable asset of the Bluebird logo in favor of a new trademark. He points out that if Elon Musk, the former CEO of Twitter, had retained the Twitter brand, the company might not have encountered these trademark issues and the associated litigation expenses. Elon Musk announced the rebrand on July 23, introducing a black and white "X" logo to replace Twitter's iconic blue bird. The parent company, X Corp, was founded by Musk in March, and while the The platform's search bar and blue "Tweet" button retained their names at launch, the rebrand has sparked criticism from users who feel it was not well thought out.
Musk's announcement has caused controversy on the platform, with many users questioning the significance and rationale behind the new "X" name. Musk himself did not provide a definitive answer to queries about the name in a post on July 24. He hinted at ambitious pl ans for the X platform, suggesting it could be involved in various financial services impacting a significant portion of the global financial system. Under Musk's leadership, Twitter's US ad revenue has reportedly declined by about 59% from April to May compared to the same period in 2022 . Former NBCUniversal executive Linda Yaccarino took over as CEO in May, while Musk remains active on the social media site.
