Denver- A New Jersey company called Brickhouse Software is suing X-rated ring-tone provider Brickhouse Mobile of Denver for trademark infringement, alleging the defendant's adult entertainment fare is tarnishing the software company's reputation.
Twelve-year-old Brickhouse Software, which specializes in Web design and computer applications, asserts the fledging Colorado company's rising profile as a pornography vendor in the mobile-phone industry is endangering the "goodwill and respect" the plaintiff has created for its Brickhouse mark.
A complaint filed Tuesday in Denver federal court cites Brickhouse Mobile's plans to offer cell-phone users "moan and groan tones" from porn stars and other sexually explicit material, including striptease videos.
"People are calling here for them," said Brickhouse Software President Jon Matcho from his Bound Brook, N.J., headquarters Wednesday. "The first call I got, I actually thought it was a potential prospect."
Brickhouse Mobile isn't listed in Denver phone directories, and calls to company founder Clint Fayling's cell phone were not returned Wednesday.
The lawsuit, however, comes two weeks after Brickhouse Mobile's announcement of a pact with Top Adult Agency, an adult-film production company representing more than two dozen porn-star actors and models. Fayling's company has previously reported a similar partnership with Boulder-based New Frontier to provide ring tones and cell-phone videos.
Brickhouse Software says it's been marketing software and related services, including automated content to wireless customers, since 2002.
Its complaint says Brickhouse Software's customers include "respected, publicly traded companies" and consumers - all of whom could mistakenly believe the defendant's controversial services are affiliated with the plaintiff's business.
The suit alleges Brickhouse Mobile's name, marketing materials and Web site are all infringements on Brickhouse Software's registered trade name.
"We think it's a good name, and we've put a lot of money in the brand from day one when we were just a startup," said Matcho of Brickhouse Software.
Brickhouse Software's attorney, Anthony Biller, said the company registered the trademark Brickhouse in 1998.
"There's already been some blurring and confusion," he said, referring to Brickhouse Mobile's first year in business. "We tried to resolve it amicably, but they just simply refused."
