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posted by Fnord666 on Wednesday August 12 2020, @12:38PM   Printer-friendly
from the fruit-fight dept.

'Bullying' Apple fights couple over pear logo

When Natalie Monson started her food blog 11 years ago, she didn't expect to end up embroiled in a fight with the world's most valuable company.

But the US small business owner is now battling Apple for the right to use a pear in the logo on her recipe app.

In a patent filing, Apple said the image was too similar to its own logo and would hurt its brand.

Ms Monson says the tech giant is simply "bullying" and she feels a "moral obligation" to fight back.

More than 43,000 people have already signed the petition she and her husband Russ, owners of the Super Healthy Kids website, created last week to try to pressure the company to back down.

Also At:
Apple wants this recipe app to stop using a pear in its logo
Apple object to Prepear logo trademark, 'terrifying' small business owners
Apple vs Prepear: Besides Pear, There are Atleast 10 Other Companies Using Fruit Logos, Will Apple Come After Them Too?
Apple objects to trademark registration application of a recipe app; Here's why


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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Wednesday August 12 2020, @01:42PM (4 children)

    by JoeMerchant (3937) on Wednesday August 12 2020, @01:42PM (#1035527)

    Well... if I had to guess, I'd say that Apple feels compelled to "actively defend" its trademark in order to forestall any claims of abandonment, and this may be the closest thing they could find to infringement this month.

    They may "actively defend" against this terrifying existential threat to their business for a month or two, then quietly settle out of court with the offender for terms agreeable to both parties. It may actually become a windfall for the small business.

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  • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 12 2020, @03:30PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday August 12 2020, @03:30PM (#1035576)

    This article [dailymail.co.uk] says they've already had to lay off someone because of legal fees. I wonder if the poor bastard will get his/her job back when the dust settles. Apple should be burnt badly for this shit.

  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by vux984 on Wednesday August 12 2020, @08:39PM (2 children)

    by vux984 (5045) on Wednesday August 12 2020, @08:39PM (#1035771)

    "I'd say that Apple feels compelled to "actively defend" its trademark in order to forestall any claims of abandonment,"

    No. The trillion dollar company doesn't actually need to sue a recipe app with a fruit themed logo to convince the court that it hasn't abandoned it's most prominently marketed and displayed trademark.
    Its more likely that apple's legal team found a flimsy excuse to issue some more billable hours to their trillion dollar sugar daddy. That's why these things really happen.

    • (Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Wednesday August 12 2020, @09:11PM (1 child)

      by JoeMerchant (3937) on Wednesday August 12 2020, @09:11PM (#1035791)

      Its more likely that apple's legal team found a flimsy excuse to issue some more billable hours to their trillion dollar sugar daddy. That's why these things really happen.

      I started work at a company on the same day as their new IP attorney. Over the next 16 months, this IP attorney was used for his political contacts and did _zero_ IP work, no new patent applications were processed, etc. Management was distracted chasing something shinier. One day it was brought to the CEOs attention that we have only gotten 9 patents issued in the previous 12 months while our similarly sized competitors have gotten 73. Being an old high school quarterback, the CEO asked around the room, High School football coach style: "do you know what that means? DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS??? - crickets - IT MEANS.... WE'RE 64 BEHIND!!! now go get us some PATENTS, double the bonuses, hire outside legal help, GO GO GO GO GO!"

      My point being, it may be even dumber than the first order cynicism you find in Dilbert, there are some truly idiotic things that drive these actions. A common idiotic driver is arbitrary metrics where someone at some relatively high level in the organization passes a decree like: "there will be a minimum of two domestic and two international trademark defense actions diligently pursued per 12 months." And, you bring up billing and budget... since the department is likely on fixed retainer, it is in their interests to find the easiest pushover targets possible while meeting the decrees, and PrePair would seem to fit the "pushover" profile quite well.

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      • (Score: 2) by MostCynical on Thursday August 13 2020, @11:50PM

        by MostCynical (2589) on Thursday August 13 2020, @11:50PM (#1036365) Journal

        where is the "+1 insightfully depressing" mod...

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