Brio ads target Business Objects
as letters claim slogan rights
By Ken Spencer Brown
May 2002
Brio Software is launching an advertising campaign aimed at rival Business Objects, but could have an even bigger battle ahead regarding the words many people use to describe both companies.
As Brio officials set their sights on segment leader Business Objects, they're threatening other companies that use the phrase "business performance management" to describe themselves.
Officials with Santa Clara-based Brio say they've sent letters to competitors using the phrase, asking them to stop or face further action.
The company won't say what companies face such action, but several competitors, including Sunnyvale-based Hyperion Solutions Corp, Canada-based Cognos Inc., and German software giant SAP, have used those words to describe their offerings.
The term -- something used alongside "business Intelligence" and "business analytics" -- has been used to describe software that collects information from corporate computers systems and arranges it into reports and charts that nearly anyone can understand. In theory, such software helps decisionmakers spot trends and potential problems.
Brio officials say that under U.S. trademark law, the company has exclusive rights to the phrase "business performance management," at least in the way they've been using it to describe the company's product.
A trademark is anything that uniquely identifies a company in a given product category -- usually a name or logo, but sometimes even a color or a sound.
"The phraseology was coined and originated by Brio and we can prove that," says Brian Gentile, Brio's chief marketing officer.
French software firm Business Objects, which has its North American headquarters in San Jose, is the segment leader with about a third of the business intelligence market in terms of revenue.
Business Objects spokesman Dave Kellogg says Brio hasn't contacted his firm about trademark issues, but adds that any claim on such a generic phrase is nonsense. (Business Objects does not use the term "business performance" extensively, if at all, and does not appear to be a likely target of any Brio legal action.)
Mr. Kellogg ads that his company is thrilled to be specifically named in Brio's newest ads, in which Brio products are shown as performing better than similar applications by Business Objects.
"They spent $150,000 on an ad that has our name in the headline and not theirs," he says.
He says any ads promoting business intelligence will benefit Business Objects.
"That's why you see Campbell's advertising soup," he says. "When you're getting 80 cents for every dollar spent in the category, any advertising is good advertising."
KEN SPENCER BROWN is a member of the Business Journal's technology team
