Apple Seeks to Gain Control of iPhone5.com Domain

[MacRumors]

While there has been much debate about whether Apple will refer to the next-generation iPhone as "iPhone 5", "iPhone 6", simply "iPhone", or something else entirely, Fusible notes that Apple has filed a claim with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) seeking to gain control of the iPhone5.com domain. WIPO authorities are currently assessing compliance of Apple's claim with the agency's regulations, and proceedings are likely to be initiated in the near future.




The iPhone5.com domain currently hosts a very small discussion forum dedicated to discussion of the "iPhone 5". The forum was launched in October 2010 following the debut of the iPhone 4 earlier in the year.




Apple's pursuit of the iPhone5.com domain is interesting given how slow the company has been to take action to secure domains related to its previous products. Apple didn't gain control of iPhone4.com until nearly a year after that device launched and Apple didn't seek to gain control of iPhone4S.com until several weeks after that device debuted last October. In the latter case, Apple was likely extremely motivated to take control of the domain because it was being used to forward visitors to pornography sites.

Given that Apple typically doesn't pursue domain names for its products until after they launch, lest their names be revealed ahead of time by the negotiation process, it seems odd that Apple is already seeking to gain control of iPhone5.com. But with "iPhone 5" having been the name informally attached to Apple's next iPhone form factor redesign for nearly two years now and still in popular use, the company apparently believes that it should have some control over the name's usage.

Article Link: Apple Seeks to Gain Control of iPhone5.com Domain

[gwelmarten]

I don't understand why they feel it's so important to have control of these domains. Clearly, with iPhone4S it was important to control it, but in general...
If I want information on the iPhone, I go to apple.com. Almost everybody knows it's made by Apple, and if they don't they go to Google and type in iPhone.
Just seems a little bit unnecessary to control them, when they probably get something like 1 millionth of their traffic to the iPhone page coming via that route.

[maflynn]

I wonder how many speculators have already snapped up iPhone5s, iPhone6,iPhone7 etc etc.

[gwelmarten]

Originally Posted by maflynn

I wonder how many speculators have already snapped up iPhone5s, iPhone6,iPhone7 etc etc.

Their all gone

[musty345]

Is there really much point in owning the iPhone5 domain for apple? The vast majority of people will just Google 'iPhone 5' when it comes out, or go on the Apple website. I can't imagine many people going on iPhone5.com

[MasterHowl]

Originally Posted by gwelmarten

Their all gone

They're*
(sorry, couldn't resist)

But on a serious note, I don't understand why they're doing this... as gwelmarten already pointed out, everyone knows the iPhone is made by Apple!

[Chupa Chupa]

Well we know there will be another model of the iPhone, and we know Apple likes to gobble up domains to prevent people from profiting from their IP. So is this really news? I don't think it tells us anything about what the next iPhone's name will be -- and who cares anyway.

[Warbrain]

This will just get everyone thinking they're right about the name. Apple just wants to snap up the domains.

[BruiserB]

Has anyone claimed thenewiphone.com yet?

[Marlor]

Originally Posted by gwelmarten

I don't understand why they feel it's so important to have control of these domains. Clearly, with iPhone4S it was important to control it, but in general...

Trademark law precedent indicates that any mark that is not actively protected can be considered to have been "diluted". This can lead to the loss of control of the trademark by the registered owner.

If a company finds their mark (in this case, "iPhone") is being used without permission, they have two legal alternatives:
- To officially sanction the use of their mark
- To take legal action to stop the unauthorised use of the mark

If they do not do this, and just ignore the trademark violation, they can lose control over their mark.

Apple are just doing what they are legally required to do. The only other alternative is to give permission to the site to use the trademark, but that would be a risky move, as it would limit their scope for action in the future if the site's content becomes a liability.

[Floris]

Gee, that XenForo forum software sure does look sexy.

[rmwebs]

Originally Posted by Floris

Gee, that XenForo forum software sure does look sexy.

Yup! Glad to see you here Floris, thought I was the only XF'er here.

XF is the forum software that MacRumors should be using...hint hint! Any self respecting forum owner should use it IMO.

[ajvizzgamer101]

Wonder why they are sticking with the numbers?

[Simplicated]

Originally Posted by ajvizzgamer101

Wonder why they are sticking with the numbers?

This does not necessarily mean they will be calling it iPhone 5. They might be acquiring it to 1) confuse others, or 2) help people who won't adapt to the name "the new iPhone".

[maflynn]

Originally Posted by gwelmarten

Their all gone

You know its funny, I just went to name.com and checked it out myself - yep, they're gone

[fungus]

Originally Posted by ajvizzgamer101

Wonder why they are sticking with the numbers?

They're not. It's just a CYA move because of the aforementioned IP issues, and probably because so many people expect that to be the name, and/or will call it that anyway regardless. Just like how so many keep referring to the new iPad as "iPad 3".

[bmms8]

i think like the new iPad, the new iPhone will not have a number or extra letters attached to it. We as consumers have drummed up iPhone 5 though its really the sixth generation iPhone and should be called iPhone 6 (if they were to keep a #)

I think it will be called iPhone, but people will refer it to iPhone 5 so its important for them to get iphone5.com

just my $.02

[gpat]

Well, iPhone4s.com used to redirect to a porn site, so you may never know.

[StealthGhost]

Won't it be 6 anyways if they don't do 4g or just call it iPhone like the iPad?

1. iPhone
2. iPhone3g
3. iPhone3gs
4. iPhone4 (because it was the 4th)
5. iPhone4s
6. iPhone6 (or 4g or LTE?)

iPhone5 just seems wrong

[bmms8]

Originally Posted by StealthGhost

Won't it be 6 anyways if they don't do 4g or just call it iPhone like the iPad?

1. iPhone
2. iPhone3g
3. iPhone3gs
4. iPhone4 (because it was the 4th)
5. iPhone4s
6. iPhone6 (or 4g or LTE?)

iPhone5 just seems wrong

that is exactly what i said. keeping it at iPhone seems highly likely

[SpectatorHere]

Originally Posted by Marlor

Trademark law precedent indicates that any mark that is not actively protected can be considered to have been "diluted". This can lead to the loss of control of the trademark by the registered owner.

If a company finds their mark (in this case, "iPhone") is being used without permission, they have two legal alternatives:
- To officially sanction the use of their mark
- To take legal action to stop the unauthorised use of the mark

If they do not do this, and just ignore the trademark violation, they can lose control over their mark.

Apple are just doing what they are legally required to do. The only other alternative is to give permission to the site to use the trademark, but that would be a risky move, as it would limit their scope for action in the future if the site's content becomes a liability.

Thank you for this. IP law is messed up these days, and, as you say, many times companies feel they have to be aggressive defending their turf, or they may end up losing it later. It's terrible legal policy that we've inherited from real property concepts developed in common law. At one point it made sense to put land to productive use as opposed to favoring land speculation, therefore squatters, farmers and people with dubious title were often given far more rights. Today, IP law is encouraging practices that hinder technological innovation, exactly counter to its purpose.

Thanks for your post!

[orfeas0]

I don't get it...
I don't see google trying to get the earth.com domain without paying (cause that's what apple's doing. Someone registered the domain before them and now they want it for free).

Also, apple doesn't even own the iphone3gs.com or iphone3g.com domain, why do they care so much about the new iphones?

[Yr Blues]

They're buying up to remove confusion and possible scams.

I'm pretty sure they're going to call it iPhone.

And the MacBook line will be called MacBook. You just pick the size and options you want. Everything is getting streamlined.

[SpectatorHere]

My personal feature requests from the new iPhone...and I appreciate some of these are software/OS developments, but bear with me:

1. Bigger screen...I hope at least an inch diagonal larger.
2. Switch to super amoled plus (or some such non-pentile oled) display, so we can actually read outside.
3. More durable (the glass on both sides is just far too fragile).
4. LTE
5. HDMI out, or ability to get a cheap dongle to do this, also standard VGA, DVI, and composite cable capable would be nice.
6. Stereo speakers on the phone.
7. Longer battery life, a couple days without a charge should be here by now!
8. USB 3.0 support for syncing.
9. Printing support that actually supports more than a handful of licensed printers.
10. Incorporation of a stylus for jotting notes.
11. Support for wifi streaming to platforms like xbox, roku, etc.
12. Ability to block calls (you have to jailbreak for this today)
13. Fix buggy wifi syncing.
14. Led to blink for missed calls
15. VOIP calling.
16. Built in IR port for universal remote.
17. Laser pointer.
18. Pico projector.
19. Optical character recognition for snapped docs.
20. Access to the file system.
21. NFC.

Obviously, few of these will be considered...but almost all could be (battery tech simply isn't here yet)

And to the extent other phone makers do incorporate these features will make their products all the more compelling.

[iMacC2D]

Originally Posted by StealthGhost

Won't it be 6 anyways if they don't do 4g or just call it iPhone like the iPad?

1. iPhone
2. iPhone3g
3. iPhone3gs
4. iPhone4 (because it was the 4th)
5. iPhone4s
6. iPhone6 (or 4g or LTE?)

iPhone5 just seems wrong

Wouldn't work from a marketing point of view. Apple's allocation of numbers to mark generations doesn't directly align with the revision of the phone, they seem to hand them out as they see fit. It does appear they attempted to bring it back into line with the iPhone 4, but quickly shifted away from it again with the 4S. I would presume if the next iPhone was to receive a number, it would be 5, whether the next is actually the sixth iPhone or not.

To complicate matters, the model identifier for the iPhone 4 is actually "iPhone3,1" (and "iPhone3,3" for the CDMA version) with the iPhone 4S being "iPhone4,1". The next revision will presumably have the model identifier of "iPhone5,1".

Originally Posted by MasterHowl

But on a serious note, I don't understand why they're doing this... as gwelmarten already pointed out, everyone knows the iPhone is made by Apple!

You would be surprised at how many people I meet that claim to have a computer made "by Mac", or "spoken to iPod" for an iPod related issue. They have no idea that Apple manufactured, sold or supported the product, as a matter of fact they don't seem to recognise the brand at all. How you could overlook the Apple brand these days is absolutely beyond me, but it does happen.