On Globe and today's infringement scare.

I was going about my usual micro-blogging routine when I came across this piece that quotes the CEO of Tonino Lamborghini s.r.l. as having called the Globe Tattoo Tonino Lamborghini 4G broadband stick a "counterfeited product," saying that the company has "never manufactured or authorized anyone to manufacture such a product."

I couldn't believe it. How could a bigwig like Globe Telecom make this rookie mistake? 

I looked around for any official response from Globe [or its spin doctors], but their statement came out much later in the day, on one of the tech blogs I follow. As it turns out, Globe Telecom was authorized to use the Tonino Lamborghini name and logo through an agreement with Primo Mobile, a Singapore-based company that in turn has a license agreement with Tonino Lamborghini s.r.l. The statement reads:

Globe Telecom obtained authorization to use the name and logo Tonino Lamborghini through an agreement with Primo Mobile, the master franchisor of mobile phone related products for the Italian brand Tonino Lamborghini. Primo Mobile is a Singapore-based company that  has a master license agreement with Tonino Lamborghini s.r.l. and is duly authorized to sub-license the use of the Lamborghini logo. The design of the Globe Tattoo Tonino Lamborghini 4G USB sticks was reviewed and approved by Primo Mobile.

Globe Telecom assures the public of its strong adherence and commitment to the highest ethical standards in business and good corporate governance.  The company will not engage in any activity that will mislead the public in the course of doing business and serving its customers.

I guess the scare was short-lived, but I don't know if the controversy should end here. I agree with the blogger when he says that an official statement should now come from Primo Mobile or Tonino Lamborghini s.r.l. Heck, even the supposed infringement claim from the CEO [and how it spread] sounds suspicious. I sure hope we hear about it in the coming days.

#

#10 - Somayyah Abdullah
[Previous posts: #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9]