Can we expect Burger King to put out a press release whining why they can't call their 1/4 pound hamburger sandwich the "quarter pounder". How about Dodge whining about why the can't start selling the Shelby Viper to compete with the Shelby Mustang ? nVidia watched AMD pretend that Freesync was a "free" version of G-Sync for years now... despite the fact that Freesync does not offer motion blur reduction technology and doesn't include a hardware module. There are Freesync monitors with manufacturer provided MBR tech hardware modules that can actually offer a product comparable to G-Sync. But AMD chose not to do so preferring to let consumers assume the "its the same thing" mindset held by most gamers. Using idential or similar naming convention, to my view, is the unfair tactic... why does AMD now use the X370 moniker if not to siphon from the reputation of Intel's Z370 ? If it's better, why not try and distinguish yourself ? I'm getting a bit frustrated with the "review my build" emails from users with a proposed build including an i5 / i7 with am X370 MoBo. What's next the AMD 1180 Tu ?
If there's anything unethical here, it's trying to bleed sales of a competitor's brand reputation. It's the AIB partners making the decision here not nVidia; nVidia put a proposal on the table ... if you partner with us to create a premium line where we unlock power, voltage and boost limits to help you build your brand, then we do not want that investment of our time, effort, and money to be diluted by allowing our competitor to use the same brand name. They have the right to do that. MSi can certainly decide "OK, we are going to use the Gaming X moniker for our AMD gaming line and pick a new name for our nVidia line". But is that in MSI's interests when 83% of the Gaming X cards thay have sold were 1060 - 1080 Ti's ? ... of course not. This is why football teams can't wear the same jersey ... why phones can't use the same product name, why I can't sell shoes with a Jimmy Choo logo. If consumers want to buy a card with AMD or nVidia techhnology, they shouldn't have to read the fine print to see what they are getting.
I'm all for AMD returning to competitiveness at the high end but whining that they can't use the same brand name as their competitor to my eyes screams "we want you to believe we are as good as them". If you believe that your next gen cards are better, then you should be striving to differentiate yourself, not copy them.
