Apple did not TM the term APP they TM APP STORE.
Its not like apple is saying they cannot call their applications apps.
They are saying they cannot call their app store the app store.
Like I said, MS should just call is the WinApp Store, problem solved.
The problem is that Apple also has a problem with a brand+app store naming scheme, as they sued Amazon last week as well for "Amazon App Store."
As for the trademark, the following post and yours can be addressed together so my response is largely to both:
This argument has nothing to do with the term "app" but with the legally given trademark "app store".
The term app store was never used before the release and subsequent trademark approval of apples app store so anybody arguing that the term is generic are just being silly. The whole concept of a trademark is to protect a companies name, slogan etc from becoming a generic term and to prevent that they have to defend against it.
The problem is that the generic term Apple is trying to trademark precisely describes the product itself.
Imagine for a moment if ATT (or Verizon or any other wireless carrier) was the first company to mass market wireless devices in a new way, and they wanted to provide a name for this mass market mechanism. Searching far and wide, they decided upon the name that succinctly described what the mass market method was, and what it provided/sold. Let's say they chose the name "Wireless Store." Would you really want that company to be able to trademark a generic term that describes the very product in question? What would other wireless companies call their stores, if not "Blah Blah Wireless Store?"
That's the same fundamental problem with Apple's trademark claim (which they haven't won yet). Apple chose a term that was already used to describe a piece of software that accomplishes a specific set of tasks. It did not originate a new term, it did not originate a new abbreviation, and it did not supply a new definition to an existing term. Apple used "app" like "app" had always been understood and stuck "store" on the end of it, which is in essence only describing the mechanism of distribution.
Generic terms can be combined to create a valid trademark when the new name is not descriptive of the product being sold. For example, the term "android" had been in existence prior to the development of the mobile OS. However, no one had used the term "android" to describe an operating system before. That trademark is valid because it is original and clearly helps people differentiate products on its own.
With "App Store," it is not clear which app store (or even what type of app store, ie computer or mobile) is being referenced without some kind of identifier. This is exactly how other types of stores operate, and why you'll see "CVS Pharmacy" and "Ron's Pharmacy" instead of just "Pharmacy."
