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A British research firm asserts that Google has committed copyright infringement by using the Gmail name.

Ever heard of Independent International Investment Research? Google has. The British company claims it, not Google, owns the copyright to the Gmail name. They plan to haul Google into court on a charge of copyright infringement, according to the Guardian Unlimited.

IIIR registered Gmail as a trademark in May 2002. Gmail went live on April 1, 2004. The two companies have been talking about the problem for the past 15 months. Apparently the talks have not led to satisfaction for IIIR:

"Correspondence and negotiations with Google have now been taking place for some 15 months, but agreement on how to resolve this situation has not been reached," IIIR said in a statement.

"Despite strenuous efforts, achievement of a settlement involving fair value is currently out of reach."
IIIR has noted it believes the Gmail name to be worth between $45 million and $62 million USD. They claim to have sought a lower figure in negotiations, but will now seek to obtain "maximum possible value for shareholders."

David Utter is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business. Email him here.