March 3, 2015
The Age of Virtual Reality is dawning. First there was the Oculus Rift—the forerunner, the one and only. But now, faster than you can say Jack Robinson, the competitors have arrived: the Microsoft Hololens, the Sony Project Morpheus, the recondite Magic Leap, and most recently, the HTC Vive. These names provide an interesting case study […]
April 28, 2014
Microsoft has thrown its hat into the smartphone virtual-assistant ring. Introducing, Cortana, the Siri-like digital assistant that debuts with Windows Phone 8.1. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because Cortana is a character—a virtual assistant, in fact—from the video game mega-franchise Halo (made exclusively for Microsoft’s Xbox). “Cortana” began as the code name for the […]
January 2, 2013
This article originally appeared at Marketing Profs. As a naming agency, we’re constantly astounded, amused…and, yes, occasionally awestruck by the brand names that naming consultants and other marketers come up with over the course of a year. And 2012 was no exception. Here, then, are Catchword’s nominations for the most inspired—and most misguided—product brand names […]
June 4, 2009
**This post was graciously contributed by Stephen Baird, Winthrop & Weinstine law firm.** Microsoft is flashing its latest version of bling with its launch of the much anticipated “decision engine” it has dubbed Bing. I agree the new brand name has a nice ring (according to Microsoft, the “sound of found”), with great brevity, rhythm […]