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Hankook Tire to face lawsuit over new corporate name

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By Nam Hyun-woo

Hankook Tire Group will likely be sued over its new corporate name, Hankook Technology Group, as the name has already been used by Kosdaq-listed auto parts company Hankook Technology, according to investors and company officials Monday.

According to Hankook Tire Group, its holding firm Hankook Tire Worldwide will hold a shareholders meeting on March 28 and change its name to Hankook Technology Group. This will affect its core unit Hankook Tire's nameplate too, which will be Hankook Tire & Technology.

The group said the decision is to reflect its desire to expand its business domain to cover various automobile businesses.

Following the tiremaker's move, Hankook Technology is on alert that it may end up losing its name.

"We have no relation with Hankook Tire and we've suddenly learned of the attempt through news reports," a Hankook Technology official said.

"We have been on the bourse for nearly 20 years. We're not a small company. A simple web search shows our website and stock information. We don't understand why Hankook Tire decided to do this and will try our best to not let our name be stolen by the tiremaker."

Hankook Technology was founded in 1997 as Vision Telecom and listed on the tech-heavy Kosdaq bourse in 2001. It took the current name in 2012. Its main businesses include manufacturing in-vehicle infotainment systems and solar panels.

The Hankook Technology official said the company is looking into "all possible ways" to protect its name, including a legal battle if necessary. Reportedly, the company is in the process of applying trademark rights to protect the name.

Over Hankook Technology's claim, Hankook Tire said there will be "no legal problem at all."

"We know there's a company named Hankook Technology and our proposed new name is Hankook Technology Group," a Hankook Tire official said. "Our legal team has gone over all processes over the name change, and found no legal problems."

However, Hankook Technology investors are already writing online comments complaining about the confusion and concerns over their shares, as news reports on Hankook Tire's renaming were automatically linked to Hankook Technology's investor forum on Korea's largest web portal Naver.

"This may trigger a suit between the two companies' trademark," an industry analyst said, citing multiple legal battles between Microsoft and other Korean firms over the former's operating system, Windows.

"In a trademark rights battle, it is important whether the two companies are in the same business domain," lawyer Kim Dong-seop at law firm YK Law. "Though it depends on the decision of the Korean Intellectual Property Office, Hankook Technology will take the advantage in an envisioned battle, if Hankook Technology gains trademark rights on its name first."



Nam Hyun-woo namhw@koreatimes.co.kr


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