Microsoft to drop SkyDrive name for its cloud-storage service
Say goodbye to SkyDrive. Microsoft has agreed to rename its cloud-storage service as the result of a trademark case in Britain.
SkyDrive cloud service lets Microsoft users upload and store files in remote servers, which they can then access from anywhere with any device.
It is one of the better names for a cloud service, especially compared to rivals Dropbox, Box and Google Drive, but Microsoft will have to give it up.
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The English High Court recently found that Microsoft had infringed on a trademark held by British Sky Broadcasting Group. As part of a settlement announced Wednesday, Microsoft will change the SkyDrive name worldwide and not pursue an appeal, as it had originally planned. The companies also reached a financial agreement but the details were not disclosed.
Microsoft did not say when the name change will happen but it will have “a reasonable period of time to allow for an orderly transition to a new brand.â€
“We’re glad to have resolution of this naming dispute, and will continue to deliver the great service our hundreds of millions of customers expect, providing the best way to always have your files with you,†Microsoft said in a statement.
Finding a name may be tough: The obvious ones, Microdrive and Microcloud, are already taken.
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