Apple Loses 'iPhone' Name Rights in Mexico over Phonetic Similarity [Updated]

[fiveainone]

You are not serious right? It was an mp3 player and you are talking about a phone company. You sheep have very small brains.

Read my iPod post. It's called branding and marketing. If you really think a one thing doesn't affect the other, you're foolish.

And to be clear, I never said Apple was right in this case. All I said was iFone probably picked up the usage of "i" from the popularity of iPod - and later clarified myself about the popularity of the iPod name, not sales of iPod. If you think popular culture has nothing to do with a company coming up a name, that's just having a small brain.

 

[nick_elt]

Read my iPod post. It's called branding and marketing. If you really think a one thing doesn't affect the other, you're foolish.

And to be clear, I never said Apple was right in this case. All I said was iFone probably picked up the usage of "i" from the popularity of iPod - and later clarified myself about the popularity of the iPod name, not sales of iPod. If you think popular culture has nothing to do with a company coming up a name, that's just having a small brain.

Just how popular was the ipod in Mexico in 2003?!??

But you are right in saying that Apple wasnt right ill give you that. And I didnt see your earlier post either when i posted.

 

[w00master]

Read my iPod post. It's called branding and marketing. If you really think a one thing doesn't affect the other, you're foolish.

And to be clear, I never said Apple was right in this case. All I said was iFone probably picked up the usage of "i" from the popularity of iPod - and later clarified myself about the popularity of the iPod name, not sales of iPod. If you think popular culture has nothing to do with a company coming up a name, that's just having a small brain.

Again, I understand what you're saying, but on this issue in question, none of what you are saying matters.

Apple was not in the right on this. At. All.

w00master

 

[yg17]

Lol actually I have been 3 times and yeah amazing doesn't really come to mind, unless u need drugs or violence

I suggest going a bit farther south of Ciudad Juarez next time you go to Mexico.

 

[w00master]

Lol actually I have been 3 times and yeah amazing doesn't really come to mind, unless u need drugs or violence

And what does this have ANYTHING to do with the issue at hand.

Oh that's right, it doesn't.

w00master

 

[fiveainone]

Again. This is a NON issue. They had it (2003), Apple did not.

END

OF

STORY.

Apple is in the WRONG. PERIOD.


w00master

I'm not disagreeing with Apple's wrong in this case at all, iFone has the right, and righteously won. My whole thing was the name iFone has a strong possibility of being influenced by iPod's marketing impact in the culture back in 2003.

Apple is wrong for suing them, yes.

 

[Gaspode67]

Don't know about anyone else but companies sticking and "i" in front of their product/company name leaching off Apples success deserves everything they get.

Right, by that standard, ITV (the UK broadcaster who has been using this identity since 1953) should sue Apple for the years of i-products...

 

[donato]

No it's not. iFone, would be pronounced as "ee-fo-ne", while iPhone would be pronounced "ee-po-ne". The "h" in iPhone is completely silent. The "ne" on both words do not end in "nay" like someone else mentioned either.

However, seeing how "iPhone" is a product name, it would just be pronounced to Spanish speaking people just like it sounds in English. Just because it's a product name. The same applies to the brand "Nike".

I have a feeling that "iFone" is just an alternate spelling for "iPhone" in spanish because of the "f" sound that the "ph" makes in the english language doesn't exist in Spanish.

Nontheless, the company name "iFone" should not sound the same as "iPhone".

You're right in some ways, but as an American living in Mexico City I can tell you that iPhone is indeed pronounced the same as it would be in the U.S., but Nike is pronounced, "Nik" as though to rhyme with the word "pike" in English- without the extra syllable at the end. Small detail, but there it is

 

[w00master]

I'm not disagreeing with Apple's wrong in this case at all, iFone has the right, and righteously won. My whole thing was the name iFone has a strong possibility of being influenced by iPod's marketing impact in the culture back in 2003.

Apple is wrong for suing them, yes.

Sorry for my misinterpretation. Trying to catch up with reading all of the posts. Sorry to lump you in with all of this.

In terms of what you're saying, that's clearly a possibility, but ultimately on the issue at hand has no bearing.

w00master

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Right, by that standard, ITV (the UK broadcaster who has been using this identity since 1953) should sue Apple for the years of i-products...

Nice one.

So Radical Apple Fanboys... shouldn't Apple be sued by iTV based on your logic?

Didn't Apple "jump on the bandwagon of iTV?" Seems like it.

w00master

 

[Maverick1337]

Apple has turned into everything they fought against in the 80's. I'm glad they lost. It serves them right for bringing up such a stupid and bogus lawsuit in the first place. They are not unbeatable like they think they are.

 

[NorEaster]

Sorry for my misinterpretation. Trying to catch up with reading all of the posts. Sorry to lump you in with all of this.

In terms of what you're saying, that's clearly a possibility, but ultimately on the issue at hand has no bearing.

w00master

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Nice one.

So Radical Apple Fanboys... shouldn't Apple be sued by iTV based on your logic?

Didn't Apple "jump on the bandwagon of iTV?" Seems like it.

w00master

Bravo! So can the Apple fanatics who pledge blind allegiance to Apple (I'm looking at you, nokuchikushi and Nunyabinez), respond to w00master's question?

iFone came first... so how the hell is Apple right in trying to defend their iPhone trademark in this case? And if they are... can ITV go after Apple now? I can't wait to hear the hypocritical drivel that's going to come from you guys.

 

[kdarling]

And to be clear, I never said Apple was right in this case. All I said was iFone probably picked up the usage of "i" from the popularity of iPod - and later clarified myself about the popularity of the iPod name, not sales of iPod. If you think popular culture has nothing to do with a company coming up a name, that's just having a small brain.

i-Names (even the name "iPhone") predate Apple's usage.

In the 1990s, the Internet was just becoming wildly popular, and Internet Appliances were seen as the future, so "i-whatever" was the big catchphrase of the day.

Why do you think Apple's ad agency pushed for the name "iMac" ... instead of Steve Jobs' outdated wish for "MacMan"? Because "iSomething" was the hot style, while "Walkman" etc was becoming dated.

 

[TrentS]

Too Foony!

I live in México and trust me, iPhone and ifone are the same. Spanish relies a lot more on phonetic spelling than English.

Oh, Fiiiiine!! Blame it all on your Spanish language!

 

[nia820]

Can Apple just stop suing everyone already? Jeez.

Yeah apple is looking real insecure these days.

 

[ctrl94]

Yeah apple is looking real insecure these days.

Why shouldn't they? They're stock prices are dropping pretty fast.

 

[TrentS]

Can't We All Just Get Along!!?

OK, so we ALL agree.............



.......in the movie Titanic, the old lady was just a big fat liar, right!!??

 

[nokuchikushi]

This post is a total fail. Your logic would have been right if a) iFone hadn't been registered first and b) if Apple had just gone after them once and settled. But iFone came first, and Apple decided to press this 3 times. So it's obvious that they aren't suing just to prove due diligence in trademark protection...they're doing it because Apple is the corporate equivalent of a petty 10 year old.

I hear ya.

Mexico has a sour taste in Canadian mouths because of the beatings and and explosions at resorts.


I probably won't go there just on reputation. Even though I'm sure its a great place. I just wouldn't feel as relaxed.

Then you are just showing your ignorance. Unless you are in the business of smuggling drugs to the US, it's 100 times safer than the US or Canada. You probably visit the US where they shoot their own children in schools, movie theaters, and on the streets, where they have drive-by's in Compton, Stockton, St. Louis, Newark, Toronto, and everywhere else, and you won't visit México? Jajajaja that's ignorant.

----------

OK, so we ALL agree.............



.......in the movie Titanic, the old lady was just a big fat liar, right!!??

Wasn't that in The Poseidon Adventure?

----------

You're right in some ways, but as an American living in Mexico City I can tell you that iPhone is indeed pronounced the same as it would be in the U.S., but Nike is pronounced, "Nik" as though to rhyme with the word "pike" in English- without the extra syllable at the end. Small detail, but there it is

Jajaja you are correct. Why did that person thinks he knows how Mexicans would pronounce those words? They are pronounced the same here in México, like you said.

 

[frayne182]

Then you are just showing your ignorance. Unless you are in the business of smuggling drugs to the US, it's 100 times safer than the US or Canada. You probably visit the US where they shoot their own children in schools, movie theaters, and on the streets, where they have drive-by's in Compton, Stockton, St. Louis, Newark, Toronto, and everywhere else, and you won't visit México? Jajajaja that's ignorant.

----------



Wasn't that in The Poseidon Adventure?

Thats my choice. I don't have to visit a country when I see resorts being blown up and women being beaten to an inch of her life on the resorts.

A Mexican man has been arrested and will likely face an attempted homicide charge in the brutal beating of a Canadian woman at a five-star resort in Mazatlan.

Sheila Nabb, 37, was found unconscious last weekend in an elevator at the resort, where she was staying with her husband.

I feel much more safe in Canada then in Mexico. Call me ignorant if you want, but its my choice.

I'll go on vacation somewhere else.

 

[TheRainKing]

Apple are quite cheeky trying to stop iFone from using their name even though it was made before iPhone. They have absolutely no case.

 

[7709876]

Stop contradicting yourself.

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You're assuming the entire population is like this. There are many people who are much more intelligent in the US.

Ignorance and intelligence are not the same thing.

 

[nokuchikushi]

You're right in some ways, but as an American living in Mexico City I can tell you that iPhone is indeed pronounced the same as it would be in the U.S., but Nike is pronounced, "Nik" as though to rhyme with the word "pike" in English- without the extra syllable at the end. Small detail, but there it is

Thats my choice. I don't have to visit a country when I see resorts being blown up and women being beaten to an inch of her life on the resorts.



I feel much more safe in Canada then in Mexico. Call me ignorant if you want, but its my choice.

I'll go on vacation somewhere else.

Resorts being blown up? Well, it must be great to live in a country without any violence or crime. Maybe that's why we have more Canadian than American tourists these days. Because Canada is crime-free and these tourists are just aching for some good explosions, beatings and beheadings. Yeah, you are ignorant.

 

[diazj3]

I agree... Apple has to stop thinking they can just sue everybody and anybody they feel like for the dumbest reasons. What's next? will they register the letter "i" as a prefix?

Anyway, three things here:

1. The MacRumors article fails to mention that the company iFone (http://www.ifone.com.mx) is in the call center hardware and software business. It has nothing to do with mobile phones, Apple or anything related with its products or services.
   

   iFone is a telecommunications company selling communications systems and services, including interfaces for IP-based telephone calls, virtual office services, and software for switching systems. It counts Microsoft Maxcom, Axtel, and Avay among its clients.

2. The picture that MacRumors presents in the article - that with an iPhone 5 - is disingenuous. Nowhere else can such picture be found, and certainly not in iFone's website. My guess is that MacRumors doctored that picture to make the article more appealing.
   
   
3. The company iFone registered its brand name in 2003 - long before the iPhone was even a concept. And it was until 2009 that Apple tried to sue them, lost, and iFone countersued them as a retaliatory measure, but the company itself didn't saw a conflict until Apple started it.

Hope this clarifies the issue.

My guess is that this case has to do with Apple's bad legal counsel, it's raging narcissism and the idea that they are the rulers of the universe. If Apple understood the name and the case, it wouldn't have started it. But when dumb lawyers get involved for a big fat fee, this is what you get. Glad they got their asses handed back to them.

Cheers!

 

[ctrl94]

Ignorance and intelligence are not the same thing.

Again, you're assuming that those people represent the entire US population. There are lots of people that would have been able to answer all those questions without pausing to think. Stop discriminating based on YouTube videos.

 

[fiveainone]

i-Names (even the name "iPhone") predate Apple's usage.

In the 1990s, the Internet was just becoming wildly popular, and Internet Appliances were seen as the future, so "i-whatever" was the big catchphrase of the day.

Why do you think Apple's ad agency pushed for the name "iMac" ... instead of Steve Jobs' outdated wish for "MacMan"? Because "iSomething" was the hot style, while "Walkman" etc was becoming dated.

lol! I had no idea about the MacMan. Oh the world we would live in today if that came into fruition.

 

[MonkeySee....]

Right, by that standard, ITV (the UK broadcaster who has been using this identity since 1953) should sue Apple for the years of i-products...

Hah. Don't think you quite understand what ITV stands for. Nice try though