A German court on Thursday dismissed legal action by the New York Times Company claiming the term “Wordle” as a protected trademark. The US publisher had brought the action against Stefan Heine, a marketer of puzzles based in Hamburg, who secured the German rights on the same day, February 1, 2022. The New York Times had no prior rights to the name, and neither owner of the name could justify claims against the other, the court ruled. It also did not accept the argument that Heine had registered the name to keep the New York Times out of the German market, as alleged by the company and denied …