Social media startup Fizz is suing grocery delivery giant Instacart and party planning app Partiful for trademark infringement, the company announced on Thursday. Earlier this week, Instacart launched a new drinks and snack delivery app for parties called Fizz and announced that Partiful had integrated Fizz directly into its platform.
Founded in 2020, Fizz is a Gen Z-focused social networking app available on more than 400 college campuses.
The suit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, seeks a jury trial, injunctive relief, damages, and a court order barring Instacart and Partiful from using the “FIZZ” name in connection with social or event planning services.
Instacart and Partiful did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment.
In the lawsuit, Fizz states that it has been using the “FIZZ” trademark since January 2022 and filed for trademark registration in December 2021. The startup is accusing Instacart and Partiful of common law trademark infringement, federal trademark infringement, cybersquatting, and violating California’s unfair competition laws.
“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,” the lawsuit reads. “Together, Instacart and Partiful are competing head-on with Plaintiff in its core market of event planning for the Gen-Z demographic. Instacart and Partiful could have chosen any name for their new venture, but rather than compete on an even playing field, they are using FIZZ.”
Fizz alleges that Instacart and Partiful knowingly launched the new app with the identical name for the same Gen Z demographic, creating a likelihood of confusion among customers who may believe that the new ordering service is affiliated with or endorsed by Fizz.
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The startup also alleges that Instacart and Partiful are exploiting its brand recognition as a known social platform for Gen Z.
“Plaintiff is informed and believes and thereupon alleges that Defendant Instacart had a bad faith intent to profit from the FIZZ Marks when it registered the domain name <FIZZ.COM>,” the lawsuit states. “Specifically, Defendant Instacart knew or should have known of the FIZZ Marks and incorporated Plaintiff’s trademark and trade name in its domain name. In doing so, Defendant Instacart intended to divert consumers from the Fizz Platform’s online location <FIZZ.SOCIAL> to the Fizz App online location for Defendant’s own commercial gain.”
Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that Partiful competes with Fizz directly in the events planning space, and that the company is now using Fizz’s name to confuse the Gen Z demographic after failing “to win the Gen Z market through fair competition.”
The lawsuit announced today isn’t Fizz’s first brush with legal action, as the startup sued rival Sidechat in 2023 over unfair competition practices.
