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Google reveals Alphabet, but BMW already owns that trademark

Google co-founder Larry Page unveiled a surprise restructuring yesterday with the announcement of Alphabet, a new company that owns Google and all of its semi-related products. Google's stock soared five percent directly after the announcement, the world was busy dissecting the meaning of alpha and bet, and things looked rosy for the new company. However, there could be one problem: BMW owns the trademark and .com domain for "Alphabet." And it doesn't want to sell, a spokesperson tells the New York Times. BMW's Alphabet provides service packages to corporations with vehicle fleets. In terms of trademark infringement, it's no problem for two companies to have the same name, as long as there's no possibility of confusion for customers. In this case, there is at least one clear connection between the two organizations: BMW is a car manufacturer and Alphabet owns Google, which has a line of self-driving cars. BMW is looking into the possibility of trademark infringement, NYT reports. As for the Alphabet domain, Google's new company has secured abc.xyz, so BMW can continue using alphabet.com without worry – except for the apparent traffic overload that hit the site after Page's announcement. Google's Alphabet has a different domain issue to tackle: China has blocked its new site, despite expansive local coverage of the restructuring, Fast Company reports. This article by Jessica Conditt originally ran on Engadget, the definitive guide to this connected life. News Source: The New York TimesImage Credit: Associated Press Government/Legal BMW Technology trademark alphabet

BMW's Vision Next 100 concept celebrates past, predicts future

Forecasting 100 years out is a tough job, so we'll forgive BMW if not everything in this concept comes true in the next century. It's the first of several that will celebrate BMW's centenary this year – concepts from Mini, Rolls-Royce, and BMW Motorcycles will follow later – and aims to guess what and how we'll be driving in the distant future. Although it's no longer a question of if, we still don't know when cars will make the switch to autonomous driving. So yeah, there's a lot up in the air. What this concept promises is more of everything. What this concept promises is more of everything: more comfort, more assistance, and a more intense experience – when you want that. Plus new, lighter materials, increased customization, and of course all the connected smarts you can throw (or will be able to throw) at a set of four wheels and some seats. It starts inside with an out-there dashboard display. Going a step further from the typical head-up display, the Alive Geometry transforms everything in your periphery into a digital blanket of context stretching from the interior to some of the exterior panels. This tessellation of moving triangles is supposed to mimic a flock of birds to bring you subtly changing information about what's going on around you. BMW gives this idea the made-up term of 4D printing. BMW gives this idea the made-up term of 4D printing, as it believes that in 30 years it will be possible to rapidly prototype this flock-of-informative-seagulls design to provide function (the fourth dimension, apparently?) in addition to the physical form. We'll check back in 2046. BMW also notes that displays in current cars will give way to OLED displays and then to the windshield-as-display concept that has been promised for a while and is seen here. About the car driving itself: BMW highlights two new driving modes for the concept, Boost and Ease. Boost is for when the driver is in control, the vehicle doing what it can to heighten the experience and the driver's awareness. It can use the Alive Geometry to show the best line or warn of other cars, integrating all the current active safety tech and more. BMW believes this will allow the driver to improve instead of just going faster. We would have called this mode iStillDriveSometimes, but hey, marketing still has 100 years to come around to that one. The important idea is that the driver will still have the choice to drive.

More stick shift models added to MINI's 2024 lineup

While automotive journalists have called in recent years for their industry and consumers to “save the manuals," their campaigns for manual transmissions have fallen mostly on deaf ears. Except at MINI. No surprise. The take rate for a stick shift in a Mini is said to be 18% to 20%, and in John Cooper Works models, it's more like 40%. The figure for the auto industry in general is 1.4%, meaning that driving stick is all but a lost art — unless you're driving a Mini, or say, a VW GTI or Golf R. In a presentation this week detailing the changes and specifications of MINIs for the 2024 model year, one revelation stands out: additional hardtop and convertible models that can be ordered with stick shifts. Specifically, the list includes MINI Cooper convertible, the Cooper S ragtop, the Cooper four-door hardtop and four-door Cooper S. Production of those cars is scheduled to begin in March. In November, MINI USA, which is part of the BMW organization, announced the return of manuals in its Cooper, Cooper S and John Cooper Works 2-door hardtops. Here's a pricing breakdown: Regarding other updates announced, MINI will continue to offer “special” editions — Untamed, Untold and Resolute — that launched a year ago and received additional enhancements in November that included new body colors, interior upholsteries, and engine variants. These three editions can be had on the respective models equipped with the Iconic Trim. MINI also says it will reintroduce the base Classic Trim to all Hardtop, Clubman, and Countryman models, and the Signature Trim will feature MINI Navigation as included equipment, with Advanced Real Time Traffic Information built in. In December, the company introduced a pair of tricked-out convertibles named the "Seaside Edition" that can be optioned in Nanuq White or Caribbean Aqua colors. Those models should be hitting dealers right about now, MINI says.