X Social Media sues Elon Musk's X over the 'X' name

X is facing legal action over its name.

To be exact, Elon Musk’s company, X, is being sued by a Florida-based legal marketing entity known as X Social Media for allegedly infringing the trademark associated with the name X.

This legal action represents the first instance in which Musk’s company has been sued over the name change. It’s anticipated that more legal challenges might emerge, considering that numerous companies within the technology sector own federal trademarks for the name X.

According to the lawsuit filed by X Social Media, the rebranding of Twitter with the new name X has caused confusion within the social media sphere. The marketing company asserts that the public has mistakenly associated the company with Musk’s X, a name X Social Media has been using since 2016.

X Social Media contends that it has already suffered financial losses due to Musk’s company changing its name and anticipates that this will continue to impact its finances negatively.

Last August, after Musk swiftly rebranded the platform from Twitter to X, X Social Media issued a cease and desist letter to the social media platform concerning the name change. However, Musk’s company continued using the X name.

Furthermore, X Social Media highlights that Musk’s company has filed trademarks for the name X in connection with various activities including social media, business data, promotion and advertising, business consulting, and market research services, all industries within which X Social Media operates. This, according to X Social Media, is evidence of trademark infringement.

X Social Media is seeking a court injunction to halt Musk from using the name X for his social media platform. Additionally, the company is pursuing damages amounting to three times its losses or the profits generated by Musk’s X.

As observed by Engadget, trademark attorney Josh Gerben indicated to Reuters over the summer that it was highly likely Twitter/X would face lawsuits from both opportunistic and legitimate plaintiffs over the new name.

Gerben’s law firm is representing X Social Media in its legal case against Musk’s X.