A federal court in Delaware has issued a ruling in a trademark dispute between Elon Musk’s X and a startup aiming to establish a competing social network. The court has prohibited the startup, Operation Bluebird, from using the name Twitter.now, siding with X on the core trademark associated with ‘Twitter’. However, it has allowed the use of the term ‘tweet’ and the Twitter bird logo, which X was found to have likely abandoned.
Operation Bluebird has since rebranded its platform as Tweet.app, leveraging the now-available ‘tweet’ name for its public launch. The startup’s mission appears less about innovation and more focused on acquiring trademarks that X has seemingly relinquished. Their homepage explicitly states their intent to reclaim what Musk discarded when he transitioned Twitter to X.
Led by lawyers Michael Peroff and Stephen Coates, the startup’s claims of creating a new social network have raised skepticism. Observers suggest their primary goal is to secure Twitter’s valuable trademarks rather than to foster a unique platform.
Despite the controversy, Tweet.app has begun user testing, reporting over 172,000 requests for handles prior to its launch. This interest is likely fueled by the lingering attachment many users have to the ‘Twitter’ brand, which the startup is now unable to utilize.
Operation Bluebird is charging users $20 to reserve their handles, a move likely intended to offset legal expenses. The court’s decision, however, is not yet final. U.S. District Court Judge Colm F. Connolly issued a split ruling on X’s request for a preliminary injunction aimed at preventing Operation Bluebird from using several Twitter-related trademarks that the startup claims X has abandoned.
The judge granted X’s motion regarding eight Twitter-related marks but denied it concerning the ‘Tweet’ mark and the Twitter bird logo. In his opinion, Judge Connolly noted that Bluebird is likely to succeed in proving that X has discontinued genuine use of the ‘Tweet’ mark and the bird logo, indicating an intention not to resume their use.
The case will continue to determine whether X retains rights to any Twitter trademarks, given its rebranding as X. Coates, president of Operation Bluebird, commented on the situation, stating, ‘They kept the word. They let go of the bird, and they let go of the tweet.’ He emphasized that the term ‘tweet’ has persisted despite X’s attempts to replace it, suggesting that public usage indicates ownership.