Oops! Sage, the accounting software giant, has got a bit of branding trouble on its hands: a US court ruled that it has infringed the trademark of a Dallas-based software business.

Sage must stop using the word 'Sage' as a business mark from the beginning of next year. A seven man jury decided that Sage's had not wilfully infringed the trademark owned by Quick Technologies (QTI). This may limit the scope for any damages that could be claimed.

Quick Technologies has operated a line of business software packages and services under the Sage name since 1992. It filed a lawsuit to protect its trademark in May 1998.

In 1998, Sage, the company, entered the US market through the acquisition of State of The Art, a California accountancy software house. It then renamed this business "Sage Software" and incorporated the Sage mark into its product line. The Sage mark was added to US acquisitions thereafter, despite warnings from QTI that it owned the rights to the name. ®