I am reading through an action brought by DS SolidWorks against Autodesk this week. (A second one was filed by Autodesk, and I'll report on its contents later.) In it, I read of Autodesk's lawyer's response to the judge, who very clearly asks if Autodesk intends to monopolize the use of .dwg for file extensions.
Naturally, SolidWorks is pointing out that .dwg was used before and during AutoCAD's existence by CAD programs that are unrelated to AutoCAD, such as Generic CADD.
SolidWorks seems to be warning the court that Autodesk is willing to allow two classes of programs to continue using .dwg as a file extension: incompatible programs and third-party applications (including competitors who license DWG APIs from Autodesk, I would think).
A third class should, in Autodesk's mind, be prevented, such as IntelliCAD, ODA, and SolidWorks -- these are compatible competitors who musts be blocked. This is my initial reading...
Update
To clarify the above paragraph, it appears that Autodesk wants to consider use of DWG by competitors as trademark infringement. Here is the argument SolidWork's lawyer is making:
1. Autodesk employees stated in deposition that .dwg file compatibility is binary -- either it is perfect or it is not. (Comment: compatibility is not binary, and I don't know if the Autodesk employees misspoke or if SolidWorks misinterpreted the meaning.)
2. CAD programs using ODA or other non-Autodesk APIs write .dwg files that are not perfectly compatible. (Comment: it could be argued that Autodesk's non-AutoCAD software also produces .dwg files that are not perfectly compatible.)
3. The imperfect compatibility would allow Autodesk to sue all the companies for trademark infringement, because "their use is not functional in the a trademark sense," according to SolidWorks. (Comment: at this point, I have lost the trail of logic.)
The SolidWorks lawyer goes on to point out that trademark ownership is more powerful than any other legal remedy. A patent on the DWG format would run out in 20 years, but a trademark is forever.
Is Autodesk Inching Towards DWG Monopoly?
The document filed by SolidWorks includes an excerpt from the judge's discussion with Autodesk's lawyer, in which the judge expresses his fear that Autodesk is attempting to create a monopoly.
Said the judge to the lawyer: "If you are trying to monopolize .dwg, you and your company are in big trouble."
Naturally, SolidWorks is pointing out that .dwg was used before and during AutoCAD's existence by CAD programs that are unrelated to AutoCAD, such as Generic CADD.
SolidWorks seems to be warning the court that Autodesk is willing to allow two classes of programs to continue using .dwg as a file extension: incompatible programs and third-party applications (including competitors who license DWG APIs from Autodesk, I would think).
A third class should, in Autodesk's mind, be prevented, such as IntelliCAD, ODA, and SolidWorks -- these are compatible competitors who musts be blocked. This is my initial reading...
Update
To clarify the above paragraph, it appears that Autodesk wants to consider use of DWG by competitors as trademark infringement. Here is the argument SolidWork's lawyer is making:
1. Autodesk employees stated in deposition that .dwg file compatibility is binary -- either it is perfect or it is not. (Comment: compatibility is not binary, and I don't know if the Autodesk employees misspoke or if SolidWorks misinterpreted the meaning.)
2. CAD programs using ODA or other non-Autodesk APIs write .dwg files that are not perfectly compatible. (Comment: it could be argued that Autodesk's non-AutoCAD software also produces .dwg files that are not perfectly compatible.)
3. The imperfect compatibility would allow Autodesk to sue all the companies for trademark infringement, because "their use is not functional in the a trademark sense," according to SolidWorks. (Comment: at this point, I have lost the trail of logic.)
The SolidWorks lawyer goes on to point out that trademark ownership is more powerful than any other legal remedy. A patent on the DWG format would run out in 20 years, but a trademark is forever.
Is Autodesk Inching Towards DWG Monopoly?
The document filed by SolidWorks includes an excerpt from the judge's discussion with Autodesk's lawyer, in which the judge expresses his fear that Autodesk is attempting to create a monopoly.
Said the judge to the lawyer: "If you are trying to monopolize .dwg, you and your company are in big trouble."
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