DirecTV Defendants Say They're Guilty of Only ‘Innocent Infringement’
DirecTV’s claims for trademark infringement against defendants WNK Associates, the Great Mile, Waleed Iqbal and Khalid Iqbal are barred by its “express consent,” said the defendants’ first amended answer Monday (docket 6:22-cv-00423) in U.S. District Court for Eastern Texas in…
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Tyler. DirecTV alleges the culprits, impersonating DirecTV telemarkers, typically contact existing or potential DirecTV customers to offer them nonexistent free or significantly discounted services or products, and then they take the consumer’s money, usually in the form of prepaid gift cards that are subsequently laundered (see 2301100039). WNK was an authorized dealer of DirecTV services up until late 2019, said the defendants' answer. In this capacity, any use of DirecTV’s trademark was made with DirecTV’s “express or implied consent,” it said. Any “residual use” by the defendants of DirecTV’s trademark amounted to “innocent infringement,” it said.