Fizz, a social media startup, has filed a lawsuit against grocery delivery giant Instacart and party planning app Partiful over trademark infringement, as revealed on Thursday. The legal action comes right after Instacart unveiled a new drinks and snack delivery app named Fizz, which Partiful has incorporated into its platform.
Since its launch in 2020, Fizz has been targeting Gen Z and is currently used on over 400 college campuses.
This lawsuit was filed on Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Fizz is seeking a jury trial, injunctive relief, damages, and a court order to prevent Instacart and Partiful from using the name “FIZZ” related to social or event planning services.
Neither Instacart nor Partiful responded to TechCrunch’s request for comments.
In its lawsuit, Fizz claims to have been using the “FIZZ” trademark since January 2022 and filed for trademark registration back in December 2021. The company alleges that Instacart and Partiful have committed common law trademark infringement, federal trademark infringement, cybersquatting, and violations of California’s unfair competition laws.
The lawsuit asserts, “This new Fizz App by Instacart and Partiful is a blatant attempt to misappropriate the goodwill that Plaintiff has painstakingly developed through its continuous use of the FIZZ Marks among the Gen-Z demographic. Together, Instacart and Partiful are competing head-on with Plaintiff in its core market of event planning for the Gen-Z demographic. They could have chosen any name for their new venture, but instead of competing fairly, they are utilizing FIZZ.”
According to Fizz, Instacart and Partiful knowingly launched their app with the same name, targeting the same Gen Z audience. This risky move creates confusion among users, who may think this new ordering service is affiliated with or endorsed by Fizz.
