Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Apple Sues Amazon Over 'App Store' Trademark

Ironworker808 said:
Actually, every other OS except Mac OS called them programs.

Also, you should look up the 'rise' of the term app into popular conscious. It happened around the year 2007. Right about the time the iPhone was released.
Click to expand...


A year before apple had an app store. Shows it is not Apples term, very good.
 
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8F190 Safari/6533.18.5)

This just in: "web" is short for "world wide web." Pass it on.
 
garyhoare said:
I'm calling BS. I never heard anyone use the term App before the iPhone. I remember reading the word and thinking, "Come on Apple. That's a little cutesy isn't it? I heard "application" from Mac people and "program" from PC people. Never "app."
Click to expand...
You must live under a rock. I have been using the term interchangeably for years since at least 2003.

mKTank said:
This is why Microsoft started by suing Apple; they know that with a granted trademark like "App Store" Apple can sue and abuse everybody else if their name has App Store in it.

I really don't know how people here can be negative to Microsoft suing Apple for this and positive for Apple suing Amazon. Talk about brainwash.
Click to expand...
welcome to blind Apple fanboyism. They lost the ability to think for themselves a long time ago.

DoofenshmirtzEI said:
Once again...

BEL.jpg
Click to expand...

It would work as an argument if the fact there was another store like the container store but really none are out there.
tinman0 said:
Strange, I've been in IT for 20 years, and until Apple produced the App Store, I've never heard anyone in IT (or outside IT for that matter) use the word "app", let alone "App Store".
Click to expand...

I will just say you are full of it about being in IT for 20 years and making stuff up.
Do not try that pull a lie like that when you got plenty of people who work in the computer world. I was here App while I was in HS in the 90's. Java App any one.

I know I have and still do use the term program and App interchangeably on somethings.
 
Apple guys are undoubtedly some of the smartest flocks on earth but they do waste time on freaking dumbest things over the years.

Perhaps counting cash is too boring?
 
I don't get why all the argument is about who started saying "app" first. That's not what the trademark is. The trademark is "App Store", two words that come together to have a specific meaning and brand relationship.

NOBODY ever uttered "I'm going to the App Store" or "I want to be an App Store developer" or "I wonder what's free on the App Store today" before 2007. I personally thought it was a dumb name then, but it has mindshare now and that's what's valuable.

Windows is an obvious name too (as in "Oh, I'm seeing everything opens up in separate windows now instead of using the command line"), but they've defended it too. It's not like there aren't other names someone could use for a software download store, it's just that people want to leech off the mindshare created by Apple.
 
dukebound85 said:
I never said they did originally sheesh
Click to expand...

Then stop using the word coined when you mean dubbed. Apple dubbed their packages Application Bundles (yes, the bundle part is important, since it is a bundle to which you refer to using the NSBundle class). And btw, Apple didn't dub or coin this, NeXTSTEP did when they wrote that little known OS that was to become Mac OS X. Apple simply inherited it.

The fact is, Application has been in use, no thanks to Apple, for a long time in the computer world. API ring a bell to anyone ? That term is as old as programming. Application Programming Interface. People always shorten terms, and Applications have always been shortened to app.
 
I think both Amazon and Apple are wrong. First, Apple is being a douche by using the generic phrase, but its obvious that they have to sue otherwise others will walk all over them.

On the other hand Amazon is being lazy using the same lame name, but then again the name works.
 
Sean4000 said:
True.

RE: iPhone trademark., Apple got it from Cisco, who got it from Infogear, who got it from Cidco.
Click to expand...

And everybody knows that Marie got it from me.

ck2875 said:
Google Trends Charts for "App Store":
Click to expand...
It reflects only that the term was made more popular by Apple's app store. But Google Trends is awfully inaccurate, picking out dates in documents which are irrelevant to the content being searched for.
 
I love Apple and all, but seriously, they are being complete girls about this.

There is nothing original about abbreviating a word. The word application has long been a synonym with software and program. There is nothing revolutionary or originally specific to the words "App Store".

Mark my words, Amazon will have no trouble keeping their name.
 
KnightWRX said:
Then stop using the word coined when you mean dubbed. Apple dubbed their packages Application Bundles (yes, the bundle part is important, since it is a bundle to which you refer to using the NSBundle class). And btw, Apple didn't dub or coin this, NeXTSTEP did when they wrote that little known OS that was to become Mac OS X. Apple simply inherited it.

The fact is, Application has been in use, no thanks to Apple, for a long time in the computer world. API ring a bell to anyone ? That term is as old as programming. Application Programming Interface. People always shorten terms, and Applications have always been shortened to app.
Click to expand...

And the fact remains that whoever starting using the word "app" first doesn't matter.
 
Veri said:
And everybody knows that Marie got it from me.
Click to expand...

lol.

I did a litle digging on the origins of the name iPhone and found that little tidbit. Interesting how many companies had the name but couldn't make it into much of anything.
 
KnightWRX said:
Then stop using the word coined when you mean dubbed. Apple dubbed their packages Application Bundles (yes, the bundle part is important, since it is a bundle to which you refer to using the NSBundle class). And btw, Apple didn't dub or coin this, NeXTSTEP did when they wrote that little known OS that was to become Mac OS X. Apple simply inherited it.

The fact is, Application has been in use, no thanks to Apple, for a long time in the computer world. API ring a bell to anyone ? That term is as old as programming. Application Programming Interface. People always shorten terms, and Applications have always been shortened to app.
Click to expand...

The only point I was trying to make was that in the OSX world, application is the term used prevalently where program is used in the Windows world from my experience

I can tell you are well-versed but I will say you could deliver your replies in a bit more less demeaning way;)

Regardless, thanks for sharing your knowledge
 
TimUSCA said:
Those of you against Apple on this don't know the first thing about marketing.

Apple has built the App Store as a brand. Of course they want to protect it. It doesn't matter that "App" has become a generic name. "Kleenex" has become generic too, that doesn't mean Kimberly Clark has to give up the name. "Dumpster" is also a generic name now. See my point?

Considering nobody called it an App Store until Apple started calling it that, I don't blame them for fighting other companies on it. It isn't frivolous - it's business. And from a marketing standpoint, it makes perfect sense.
Click to expand...

You're getting it backwards, as is the guy that used the band-aid reference. Yes, people use the term Kleenex, Saran Wrap, Coke, etc., because of great marketing and overwhleming market share. BUT if KC had called their product "Tissue", they shouldn't be able to trademark that. Similarly, Band-Aid is fine to trademark, but if they had called their product, "Bandage", that wouldn't work.

And every time this topic comes up, I see the Windows reference. MS created an OS and called it Windows; they didn't create a new window and call it Window. You can certainly argue some of their other product names, like "SQL Server", or "CMS", but that's why they add the name "Microsoft" in front of the offical product name.

Can you imagine if Google named their product "Search Engine", and then declared since they have the most market share, no one else can call their product a search engine?

..and I've been doing "App" development for 15 years.
 
lilo777 said:
Is there any tech company in the world that is not being sued by Apple?
Click to expand...

Apple reminds me of Andy Kauffman "I'm from Hollywood I'll sue you!" Apple's stupid for pursuing this It's like Walmart trademarking the word grocery store.
 
tinman0 said:
Strange, I've been in IT for 20 years, and until Apple produced the App Store, I've never heard anyone in IT (or outside IT for that matter) use the word "app", let alone "App Store".
Click to expand...

You must have been living under a rock if you never used a Palm Pilot with its associated "apps."

Here's a link to a March 2002 review of the Treo 180, where you will find terms like "SMS app", "apps list", "core apps," and just "apps".

http://the-gadgeteer.com/2002/03/12/handspring_treo_180_review/

The term has not only been used for a long time to as a shortcut for "applications," but it was specifically used to denote the little programs you run on a PDA, or even on Smartphones (to the extent a circa 2002 treo counts as a smartphone).
 
ChrisTX said:
Bingo!
Click to expand...

well...App store is generic because it is a store that sells apps


Windows is an operating system and not a store selling windows... if you think it is trademarking the window of an application then no it is not otherwise you wouldn't see window in your status bar.

So yes app store is generic and windows is not.

thats like apple calling a mouse "mouse" and trademarking it.
 
*LTD* said:
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Mobile/8F190)

And no one ever said App until the App Store. It's rightfully Apple's. They've earned it and I hope their stellar legal team chalks up another win.
Click to expand...


You are 100 percent wrong.


gnasher729 said:
To your first point: Apple spends tons of marketing dollars to explain to people that they can go to the App Store and either buy apps or get free apps that will run on an iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad. And some people _will_ go to the Amazon App Store, buy something, and then complain to Apple that it won't run on their iPhone. That's confusion.

Next, Apple has spent marketing dollars to tell people that they can go to the App Store and buy apps, and that Apple's app store is a good place to buy apps, and every time customers do that, Apple makes money. Now people will go to the Amazon App Store, thinking they are at the excellent App Store that is advertised by Apple, when in fact they are not. That's confusion.

Your second part is of course irrelevant because Apple _does_ have the trademark for "App Store", so if you were confused by Apple's use of the term, that wouldn't matter.




That would be a very good argument if Apple (or anyone else other than Ubuntu) tried to trademark "Software Center". The argument for Apple being allowed to trademark "App Store" is that the term "App Store" hasn't been used before Apple used it.
Click to expand...

There will always be idiots. Or people who get confused. The question isn't about the minority - it's about the majority. And the MAJORITY of people won't be confused.

Those with iDevices know that they can only buy apps from the Apple App store and it says so in the description of the app exactly WHAT devices they can be used one. A minority of people still buy apps which don't work on their particular iDevice. Again - a minority. Training people to be lazy and not look to see what/where the app will work isn't the answer.

Those who buy phones NOT apple would have no reason to think an apple app would work on their device as well.

Again - a minority of people will be confused at best... and you can't cater to the minority.
 
samcraig said:
You are 100 percent wrong.




There will always be idiots. Or people who get confused. The question isn't about the minority - it's about the majority. And the MAJORITY of people won't be confused.

Those with iDevices know that they can only buy apps from the Apple App store and it says so in the description of the app exactly WHAT devices they can be used one. A minority of people still buy apps which don't work on their particular iDevice. Again - a minority. Training people to be lazy and not look to see what/where the app will work isn't the answer.

Those who buy phones NOT apple would have no reason to think an apple app would work on their device as well.

Again - a minority of people will be confused at best... and you can't cater to the minority.
Click to expand...

Just ignore him Apple can do no wrong in his eyes..
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back