Halo Management, LLC v. Interland, Inc.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

Motion for Preliminary Injunction

In March 2003, plaintiff Halo Management, LLC (“HM”) brought this civil action against defendant Interland, Inc., seeking monetary and injunctive relief for alleged violations of federal trademark law, see 15 U.S.C. §§ 1114 , 1125, and of California’s Business and Professional Code. See Cal. Bus. & Prof.Code § 17203. At the heart of HM’s complaint is Interland’s use—in a variety of contexts—of the word mark “HALO,” a mark for which plaintiff holds a registered United States trademark.

Before the court is HM’s motion for a preliminary injunction. HM has asked the court to prohibit Interland from using the “HALO” mark, as well as any variation thereof, in its business enterprise. The court has considered fully the parties’ arguments, and for the reasons set forth below, the court rules as follows.

BACKGROUND

Founded as a sole proprietorship, HM is a small, privately-held limited liability corporation based in Los Altos, California. Focusing on internet-related services, HM offers email, web-search functions, and web-hosting to its list of subscribers and customers. Interland, Inc. is a publicly-traded corporation,…