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New York, 10:58 AM
Sun Nov 15
15 posts in the last 24 hours

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  • posts about #trademark more →

    Sony Registers 'Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman!' Trademark

    Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'

    Dell Wants to Set "Netbook" Free

    Mr. T-Mobile Warns Mr. Engadget Mobile Over the Color Magenta

    Fark Attempts to Trademark NSFW, Gizmodo is Like 'WTF? TFSU!'

    Is Sega Working on Dreamcast II? Please Let This Be True

    Apple and Cisco Extend Deadline, Still Hate Each Other

    iPhone Roundup: True Cost, 3D, and Ringtones!

    Apple Files iPhone Trademark, Heads Explode
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    Dsmvwl  Admin  Promote to frontpage Approve user Ban user ×
    Image of Kaiser-Machead Kaiser-Machead
    03/31/09

    In reply to Sony Registers 'Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman!' Trademark
    Well well, if it isn't Batmench, and the Goy Wonder.
     Reply
    Kaiser-Machead was starred Kaiser-Machead was unstarred
    Image of TheHeartless TheHeartless
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    I was in high school when the first iPod came out, and one of the first adopters before I graduated. By senior year everyone had either a 4G or a mini. I've owned 6 iPods, turned my friends onto iPods and Macs, and I own a first-gen iPhone. So, let me be very clear.


    I have never, in my life, heard anyone in person, on the internet, or in any other form of media, refer to the iPod as a "'Pod". Not one single time. Women who came to buy them from me at Meijer, didn't even know the difference between an iPod and an mp3 player (i.e. that there is none), at least knew that an iPod was an iPod, and not a 'Pod.


    Moreover, there is a company in my region that sells a service of portable storage, called PODS. I never saw Apple throw a shit fit over that, and the word is right there: pod! At least in this context, it is in the word podium, which is a self-contained word. The origin of the word podium lies in the word pod, but only as a word for 'foot' so I think it's safe to say that you have to reach pretty damn far to make this connection.

     Reply
    TheHeartless was starred TheHeartless was unstarred
    Image of OMG! Ponies! OMG! Ponies!
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    I know why Apple is doing it; but Apple shouldn't be surprised to get a TFSU letter in response.
     Reply
    OMG! Ponies! was starred OMG! Ponies! was unstarred
    Image of Lukasz Fabis Lukasz Fabis
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    This does infringe on Apple's industrial design rights, since the Podium is meant to mimic the iMac's appearance.


    I'm thinking that the whole naming issue Apple is trying to bring up is a smoke screen, and indeed, I'd be willing to bet that if this reaches the courts, Apple will focus much more on the design than on the name.

     Reply
    Lukasz Fabis was starred Lukasz Fabis was unstarred
    Image of OMG! Ponies! OMG! Ponies!
    03/18/09

    @Lukasz Fabis: I don't think much of the "trade dress" claim here. It isn't as blatant as the eMachine was.
     Reply
    OMG! Ponies! was starred OMG! Ponies! was unstarred
    Image of strider_mt2k strider_mt2k
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    LOL


    You just keep "buying in".


    Suckers.

     Reply
    strider_mt2k was starred strider_mt2k was unstarred
    Image of Kaiser-Machead Kaiser-Machead
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    Seems you've etched away at whatever collective soul you've had left, and now allow your legal team to prance around to dole out warning letters willy-nilly like they're the goddamn litigation fairy.


    Next you'll have your Cupertino death squads roving around sniping anyone who dares to take a bite out of an apple with a fucking leaf still attached to the stem. Will you then sue LEGO because their Duplo systems have a similar feel as a shiny white Macbook?


    Gah! You used to be cool!

     Reply
    Kaiser-Machead was starred Kaiser-Machead was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @Kaiser 'Club Sammich' Machead: You mean this guy?
     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
    Image of JohnDeere JohnDeere
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    my coathangers sound better than..... wait a minute this isnt monster... well my coathangers probably still sound better anyway
     Reply
    JohnDeere was starred JohnDeere was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @JohnDeere: With a few smart bendifications I'm sure you could make a right'purdy stand out of yur coat hanger.


    Myself, I prefer to hang my coats on them, but that's just me.

     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
    Image of daftrok daftrok
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    Apple doesn't know when to STFU
     Reply
    daftrok was starred daftrok was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @daftrok: or GTFO.
     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
    Image of Poison_Shroom Poison_Shroom
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    You guys are full of crap (the above commenters.)

    Now, I agree that it's a dick move by Apple, but they have a decent case.


    When I talk about MP3 players, I don't call my zen a pod, I would call my iPod a pod if anything. Now I agree it's a stretch, but the name "PODium" is obviously playing off of the ipod's sucess.

    Secondly, the case stand identically matches the iMac stand as well.


    They wanted it to look like an Apple product because they are marketing to apple/ipod consumers. But, while doing this they punned a name and copyed the stand which is infringement.

     Reply
    Poison_Shroom was starred Poison_Shroom was unstarred
    Image of OMG! Ponies! OMG! Ponies!
    03/18/09

    @Poison_Shroom: Except for the fact that a podium is a platform that is used to raise something to a short distance above its surroundings. it is like a dias, although it is also used interchangeably with "lectern". It derives from the Latin for foot.
     Reply
    OMG! Ponies! was starred OMG! Ponies! was unstarred
    Image of amishsniper amishsniper
    03/18/09

    @Poison_Shroom: You actually call your iPod a pod? You must be the only one.

    I may not have a very good understanding of trademark laws, but I'm sure "McDonalds" would have a difficult time killing competition that used the name "Donal" - any lawyers out there know if there is precedence for enforcement of partial names beyond the "i"?
     Reply
    amishsniper was starred amishsniper was unstarred
    Image of Kaiser-Machead Kaiser-Machead
    03/18/09

    @Poison_Shroom: Really, that's just a wee bit silly.


    The item has no competing duplicate from Apple. This thing isn't going to usurp the role of anything Apple has, like, ever.

     Reply
    Kaiser-Machead was starred Kaiser-Machead was unstarred
    Image of OMG! Ponies! OMG! Ponies!
    03/18/09

    @amishsniper: The name: that's a loser claim.


    The trade dress claim: that's a lot stronger. Go to the company's website and you'll see that, yes, it appears to be taking the look of the iMac.


    [www.podiumrevolution.com]


    Apple beat eMachines several years ago on a "trade dress" claim involving the iMac.

     Reply
    OMG! Ponies! was starred OMG! Ponies! was unstarred
    Image of Rincewind Rincewind
    03/18/09

    @OMG! Ponies!:

    The eMachine was a computer, though. But unless this stand somehow transforms an iPhone into an iMac-competitor, it's just a way to have a nifty stand that looks like your iMac. Sit them side by side on your desk or whatever. It's not going to eat into any of Apple's sales. Heck, it might actually boost them a little.
     Reply
    Rincewind was starred Rincewind was unstarred
    Image of OMG! Ponies! OMG! Ponies!
    03/18/09

    @Rincewind: Did you look at the photos of it in action? Looks a helluva lot like an iMac.


    I'm not saying it's a slam-dunk; I'm saying it's a colorable claim.

     Reply
    OMG! Ponies! was starred OMG! Ponies! was unstarred
    Image of go2hellyo go2hellyo
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    Although I agree the claim is ridiculous they should just transpose the P and the D making Dopium. I just think it sounds cool, like if dope and opium mated and had a drug baby.
     Reply
    go2hellyo was starred go2hellyo was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @go2hellyo: I'd smoke it.
     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
    Image of SuperTuna SuperTuna
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    In releated news - Apple has also filed claims against peas and whales.
     Reply
    SuperTuna was starred SuperTuna was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @SuperTuna: Mother nature has filed a counter claim, alleging that Apple is not as "Green" as they claim to be.
     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
    Image of Shikestarr Shikestarr
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    I'd expect apple to get shut down over "POD", especially since "podium" is already a word, but they'll prolly win on the iMac base design point.


    Trademark law can sure make a company look like a bunch of jerks.

     Reply
    Shikestarr was starred Shikestarr was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @Shikestarr: "A company sure can make themselves look like a bunch of jerks."


    There, fixed that for ya. ;)

     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
    Image of Lite: hates Illinois Nazis Lite: hates Illinois Nazis
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    Damn Pod people!


    I guess the question I have is: Is it pronounced POD-ium, or Podium? As that would make a bit of a difference.


    At least they didn't name it the Gateway Monster Pod. You'd have Gateway, Monster Cable, Monster.com, and Apple suing them.

     Reply
    Lite: hates Illinois Nazis was starred Lite: hates Illinois Nazis was unstarred
    Image of irfan irfan
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    ive never heard someone say "pod" instead of "ipod" unless they are referring to a moving service. Can PODS sue apple, or vice versa?
     Reply
    irfan was starred irfan was unstarred
    Image of The Amazing Ant The Amazing Ant
    03/18/09

    @irfan: I was wondering the same thing.
     Reply
    The Amazing Ant was starred The Amazing Ant was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @The Amazing Ant: I wouldn't mind being a spectator to that clusterfcuk.
     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
    Image of Cameron Thomas Cameron Thomas
    03/18/09

    In reply to Apple Sends Cease & Desist to Makers of Podium, Want Them to Ditch the 'Pod'
    You can't say no to Pod and not all of those stray i's flying around
     Reply
    Cameron Thomas was starred Cameron Thomas was unstarred
    Image of IN THE FACE! IN THE FACE!
    03/18/09

    @Cameron Thomas: iAgree.
     Reply
    IN THE FACE! was starred IN THE FACE! was unstarred
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