Apple sued over iPhone name

SAN FRANCISCO: Network giant Cisco has sued Apple for trademark infringement, saying that it owned the rights to the name iPhone - the mobile device unveiled by Apple.



Cisco said that on Wednesday it had filed a suit in a federal court in San Francisco, and that it had launched its own Internet phone called the iPhone just three weeks ago.



The two companies had been negotiating over use of the name, but Apple apparently unveiled the device Tuesday before reaching agreement.



"There is no doubt that Apple's new phone is very exciting, but they should not be using our trademark without our permission," said Mark Chandler, Cisco senior vice president and general counsel.






"The potential for convergence of the home phone, cell phone, work phone and PC is limitless, which is why it is so important for us to protect our brand."



Apple said that Cisco's right to the name did not extend to cell phones. "We are the first company to use the name iPhone for a cell phone, and if Cisco wants to challenge us on it, we are very confident we will prevail," said Apple spokesperson Steve Dowling.






"There are already several companies using the name iPhone for voice-over-IP products. We believe Cisco's US trademark registration is tenuous at best."





iPhone quite interesting, says Nokia
Apple’s iPhone is an interesting product, but its sales goal is not very high, Anssi Vanjoki, the head of the multimedia unit at Nokia was quoted as saying on Thursday.





Apple unveiled its much-anticipated take on the smart phone on Tuesday, presenting a sleek device with a large screen that combines a phone, an iPod and instant messaging. “It is quite an interesting product but it is lacking a few essential features, such as 3G, which would enable fast data connections,” Vanjoki, whose multimedia unit is a direct rival to Apple, was quoted as saying by Finnish business daily Taloussanomat.





Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said it could sell 10 million iPhones in 2008. This would be roughly 1 per cent of the number of mobile phones forecast to be sold that year.



Source : DNA
 
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