Best Buy is not happy with Newegg’s newest ad campaign. The big box claims the online retailer is in clear violation of copyrights held by Best Buy by using the word “geek.” The entire Geek On campaign is under fire, including a perceived infringement on the Geek Squad logo and, in a new commercial, unflattering portrayal of employees allegedly intended to depict those at Best Buy.

Newegg’s new Geek On campaign features a black and orange logo; Best Buy’s Geek Squad logo is also orange and black, though they do not look similar.

The added insult, according to Best Buy, is that Newegg ripped off their Black Tie Protection logo by making the “O” into a power button. Best Buy has issued a cease-and-desist letter.

The fake Best Buy employee is depicted as being slovenly and uninformed about computer products, in contrast to your employees who are portrayed as “experts.”

Your misuse of our valuable trademarks and your negative portrayal of our employees violate our trademark rights and misleads consumers about our services, in violation of federal and state law. While we welcome fair competition, we cannot tolerate unfair competition that disparages our employees, confuses customers and damages our valuable trademarks and the goodwill associated with those marks. We take great pride in our employees and the high quality of customer service they offer and find your company’s focus on our employees in this advertising campaign to be particularly offensive.

What do you think? Is Best Buy being ridiculous or has Newegg crossed the line?

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