Apple Trademark Enforcement

[AppleH8r]

Wanted to get the community's opinion on Apple's trademark enforcement policies.

Do you guys think they are too aggressive, just right, or too lax?

[baggss]

They don't seem any more aggressive than many big companies are.

[Code Monkey]

Originally Posted by baggss

They don't seem any more aggressive than many big companies are.

That's not really saying much. Very few big companies inspire the sort of fan base Apple manages. Your trademark is only worth the mindshare in the consumers of your product, Apple seems to forget this. They are so unilaterally rabid that, no, they will never have to fear even Bill Gates in disguise as the judge in a trademark infringement case being able to declare they were too lax and so forfeited their right to dispute a given trademark, but they also kill a lot of positive promotion of their brand in the process. They spend a lot of money creating their image, and then they spend a lot of money on lawyers to destroy it in the name of defending it.

[bdb]

I have to agree with Baggs. I'm no fan of Apple's legal behavior, but when it comes specifically to trademark I don't think they're unusually aggressive. Many large (and small) companies take trademark very seriously.

The area where they are unusually litigious is in the area of disclosure. They're probably the only company who can sue their own fan sites and still be so revered.

[AppleH8r]

Check out this one:

http://www.helpmesue.com/post/ip-esq-to-battle-apple-on-tm-op/

Does this logo look anything like an Apple tm? yet the owner is having trouble registering it because Apple is opposing.

Wanted to get your opinions on whether or not this is overkill?

I really like Apple products, but sometimes the rabid fans and "holier than thou" attitude puts me off

Thanks

[pohatu771]

Apple made a movie called First Breath: Sea Otters. It's an educational film, through their "Apple Learning Exhcange" division.

That's all I can see about it.

[bdb]

Unless we know all the trademarks that Apple has registered, there's really no way we can say whether Apple is justified or not. I seriously doubt they're opposing it based on their well-known Apple logo!