Kraftwerk are suing an electronics company which has given the name ‘Kraftwerk’ to a mobile device charger.
The band’s co-founder Ralf Hutter has filed a trademark infringement case against Dresden-based firm eZelleron, which has created its device using advances in fuel cell technology.
The device can be recharged within seconds and provide weeks of charge for iPhones, tablets and GoPro cameras, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Hutter owns a wide-reaching trademark registration on Kraftwerk and the complaint filed in a US federal court reads: “Defendant is taking advance orders for the Kraftwerk charging device, therefore, consumers are likely to assume that there is a connection, association, or relationship between the famous electronic music band and a charger for portable musical-playing devices.”
Hutter and his attorney, Jamie Edmonson, are demanding that online service providers and fundraising platforms remove references to eZelleron’s Kraftwerk.
The word Kraftwerk is German for power station.
