Mattel Inc., the largest toymaker in the world, was sued for trademark infringement by an educational-technology company, Quia Corp. of San Mateo, California.  Quia accused Mattel and its Fisher-Price unit of infringing its “IXL” trademark.  The suit stems from advertisements by Mattel and Fisher-Price for a “multi-tech, six-in-one smart device fro preschoolers” that is marked as “iXL.’ Quia said it began using the term “IXL” for one of its e-learning web-based products in 2007, and that its promoted through several web sites. The program related to the “IXL” product now has more than 30,000 family memberships and 1,800 school membership in the U.S.  Quia claims Mattel’s use of “iXL” will be confused by their “IXL” and has objected to Mattel’s attempts to register “iXL” as a trademark.

In additional to tasking the court to bar Mattel and Fisher-Price’s use of “iXL”, Quia asked the court for an award to money damages and lost profits, attorney fees and litigation costs.

David Ortiz was sued for trademark infringement by a company owned by hip-hop entrepreneur Jay-Z.  Jay-Z accused Ortiz of infringing the “40/40″ trademark for a series of sport-themed bars owned by Jay-Z’s company, The Name LLC.  Ortiz who was a frequent guest  at the New York “40/40″ club, opened a “Forty Forty” club in the Dominican Republic, according to the complaint filed April 15 in Federal Court in Manhattan. The Name also objects to the web site Ortiz uses to promote his club, www.fortyforty.net.  Ortiz and his partners in the Dominican club “are trying to reap what they have not sown,” according to the court papers. According to the Complaint, the unauthorized use of the 40/40 marks for the Dominican club has deceived the public into believing a connection with the U.S. based chain. In addition to seeking monetary damages in excess of $5 million, the Name asked the court to bar use of its trademark name, and transfer of the offending domain name. Additionally, the company seeks an award of attorney fees and litigation costs.