JR Cigars
Encyclopedia
800-JR Cigar, Inc., more commonly known as JR Cigar or JRCigars.com, is one of the largest wholesale
rs and retail
ers of cigar
s, cigar related products and pipe tobacco in the United States
. The company originated as a cigar shop in Manhattan
but now chiefly operates through on-line and catalog sales; however, the company maintains three retail outlets in North Carolina
, two in New Jersey (Whippany with Executive Offices, and Paramus), as well as a retail locations in Manhattan, Washington DC, and Detroit, MI.
The company previously traded on the NASDAQ
under the trading symbol JRJR after an initial public offering
in 1997. The Spanish
company Altadis S.A.
acquired a 51% controlling interest in the company in 2003. The company continues to operate as a subsidiary of Altadis.
The company has been prosecuting significant litigation against GoTo.com (Now Overture / Yahoo - The first to bring on Pay for Placement on a search engine) on the issue of whether the use of a trademark as a paid keyword in search engine advertisement constitutes trademark infringement. To be brief, Goto.com (Overture) was selling keywords such as "JR Cigars", "JR Cigar", and other variations of "JR Cigar" to competing cigar retailers - thus "illegally diverting traffic" from a trademarked name to other sites. In the latest decision, the court held that GoTo had been making a “use” of the trademark “in commerce”, but concluded that it was unable to grant summary judgment
on the issue of infringement, so that a full trial
is necessary.
Wholesale
Wholesaling, jobbing, or distributing is defined as the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers, to industrial, commercial, institutional, or other professional business users, or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services...
rs and retail
Retail
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be...
ers of cigar
Cigar
A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
s, cigar related products and pipe tobacco in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The company originated as a cigar shop in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
but now chiefly operates through on-line and catalog sales; however, the company maintains three retail outlets in North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, two in New Jersey (Whippany with Executive Offices, and Paramus), as well as a retail locations in Manhattan, Washington DC, and Detroit, MI.
The company previously traded on the NASDAQ
NASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
under the trading symbol JRJR after an initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
in 1997. The Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
company Altadis S.A.
Altadis
Altadis is a multinational purveyor and manufacturer of cigarettes, tobacco and cigars. Altadis was formed via a 1999 merger between Tabacalera, the former Spanish tobacco monopoly and SEITA, the former French tobacco monopoly...
acquired a 51% controlling interest in the company in 2003. The company continues to operate as a subsidiary of Altadis.
The company has been prosecuting significant litigation against GoTo.com (Now Overture / Yahoo - The first to bring on Pay for Placement on a search engine) on the issue of whether the use of a trademark as a paid keyword in search engine advertisement constitutes trademark infringement. To be brief, Goto.com (Overture) was selling keywords such as "JR Cigars", "JR Cigar", and other variations of "JR Cigar" to competing cigar retailers - thus "illegally diverting traffic" from a trademarked name to other sites. In the latest decision, the court held that GoTo had been making a “use” of the trademark “in commerce”, but concluded that it was unable to grant summary judgment
Summary judgment
In law, a summary judgment is a determination made by a court without a full trial. Such a judgment may be issued as to the merits of an entire case, or of specific issues in that case....
on the issue of infringement, so that a full trial
Trial
A trial is, in the most general sense, a test, usually a test to see whether something does or does not meet a given standard.It may refer to:*Trial , the presentation of information in a formal setting, usually a court...
is necessary.
External links
- Company website
- Annual report listing 51% interest in 800-JRCigars
- Summary of litigation against GoTo.com
- More Details of Litigation
See also
- Cigars International
- List of cigar brands
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