As patent disputes are going strong, a close cousin, trademark dispute, also has its place in the litigation arena right now.

Google Inc. is embroiled on a multi-front fight to protect the domain name of its popular e-mail service Gmail. On Feb. 26, reports surfaced of a brewing snit between Google and Gmail.cn's Chinese domain parent ISM Technologies, which according to Reuters, refuses to sell its name, though Google hasn't yet kicked off a lawsuit. The news comes as the international search giant grapples for market share against China's leading engine Baidu.com and after earlier reports that Google has already brought legal action against a host of Polish poets to prevent their use of the gmail.pl address, Reuters said, and last week, lost a battle for sole control over the Gmail trademark in Switzerland. —Carolyn Murphy

Go to Reuters story

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