Peeple — A Case of Mistaken Identity

Peeple, the app that allows you to rate other people, has quickly become the most talked about topic amongst people. However, the attention the app is getting lately is not positive, as people are lashing out at the developer of the app, Chris Chuter, questioning him on the morals of his idea. The funny thing is that Chris Chuter has no associations with Peeple the app, meaning he is not the developer, and his only crime is having a company with the same name, Peeple.

It seems as if people have confused the two and he has found himself clarifying to people that Peeple the company and Peeple the app are two different things. Peeple the app allows users to rate others on their looks, profession, personality, and on how datable they are. With both going by the same name, the confusion has overshadowed his and his team’s achievement of winning the 2015 JLAB by John Lewis competition. His product allows users to see who is at their door through their phone, and they don’t have to be home to see who’s at the door.

Now, Chuter has spent most of this time trying to clarify to people that his company is not behind the launch of this app. He still has thousands of unanswered emails and notifications waiting for him with most of them not realizing that the app and the company are two very different applications with two different purposes. However, you cannot say the same for Twitter. For instance, Chrissy Teigen, John Legend’s model wife had this to say, “In an age, where both truth and gossip on the internet can literally ruin lives, this app is horrible and scary.”

Chuter wants the spotlight back to highlight the award winning invention he has created with his team. In order to put this matter to rest, he has tried to contact the developers of Peeple (the app) on multiple occasions, but has not been able to reach them. He has also filed a lawsuit against them to take their name back. His company has registered their trademark in the United States with Peeple the app registering their name around that time as well, but the app developers did it in Canada.

In Canada, the app’s status is suspended, meaning that another company has challenged their use of the trademark there. You should know that it is legal for two companies to have the same name as long as the names are not registered in the same country. The status “suspended” doesn’t indicate that the company has been denied the use of the name, but it means that they are just not using it right now. However, suspension can result in cancelation, as a company based in the states can take them to court, stating that they are using the name, which would leave it up to Canada to decide what step to take next.

In order for Chuter to make that defense, he has to prove in court how Peeple the app is damaging his brand. If the app is to launch in the United States, the company has evidence that they must refrain from using their trademark.

Will Chuter change the name of his company? His answer—“We are not changing our name and we’re not going anywhere.”