Google And Rosetta Stone Settle AdWords Trademark Infringement Suit

Six months after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit reversed the district court's dismissal of Rosetta Stone's trademark infringement lawsuit against Google, the parties issued a joint statement today announcing that they have settled their legal dispute. The parties stated:  "Rosetta Stone Inc. and Google have agreed to dismiss the three-year-old trademark infringement lawsuit between them and to meaningfully collaborate to combat online ads for counterfeit goods and prevent the misuse and abuse of trademarks on the Internet." 

Rosetta Stone's lawsuit, filed in 2009, accused Google of trademark infringement and dilution based on Google's sale of Rosetta Stone's trademarks to third-party advertisers for use as search keywords.  Google's AdWord's program allows advertisers to buy keywords that trigger sponsored link advertisements that appear on the top of Google's search result pages.  In 2010, the district court granted Google a total victory.  It