In a completely predictable turn of events, Apple is being sued for using the term “iWatch” in some of its online ads. The trademark owner says it also working on a smartwatch that runs Android.
Despite the fact that Apple’s wearable is simply called Watch, the company is still being sued for using iWatch in some of its ads featured on Google Search, which direct users to its website. Why the company is doing this is fairly obvious, seeing as almost all iProducts were created by Apple.
But that’s no excuse, according to an Irish company called Probendi, which owns the “iWatch” trademark in Europe. The company says that Apple’s use of the term isn’t legal and that the company was ignored by both Google and Apple.
Now Problendi has filed paperwork to a court in Milan, to get Apple to stop using the trademark, which was valued at just shy of $100 million. Of course, Probendi, which claims it is also working on a smartwatch powered by Android called iWatch, is also looking for reparations from Apple.
This isn’t the first time that Apple is being sued for the use of certain names for its products. Companies and individual claiming to own everything from iPhone to iPad have, over the years, tried to exact their share of treasure from the Cupertino-based company.
Whether Apple settles out of court with Probendi remains to be seen, but given that the company legally owns the trademark it’s clear Apple can’t entirely ignore this lawsuit.
Source: Bloomberg
28 Comments - Add comment