Apple is taking the.........pear!?

[Ttaskmaster]

Are we going to see William Tell and Granny Smith team up and take down the evil empire?

Ooh, ooh, please sir - Can *I* sing the overture as they ride into battle?

If they release some super-sized desktop might McDonald's be in trouble?

Oh, they're already having troubles: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-49254551

[Unique]

the problem is if they let the small businesses get away with things they know off, a bigger competitor who could cause harm may do the same and use the smaller examples as reasons in court for them to get away with it

plus there was already a big legal case between apple computers and apple corps (the beatles), so after an expensive process they will want to protect the branding more

if it was just a blog that's one thing, but i presume it's the app that's caused this if that's the logo connected to it

[ik9000]

the latter was the beatles suing apple though (they were using the fruit long before jobs et al).

[AC81]

the problem is if they let the small businesses get away with things they know off, a bigger competitor who could cause harm may do the same and use the smaller examples as reasons in court for them to get away with it

plus there was already a big legal case between apple computers and apple corps (the beatles), so after an expensive process they will want to protect the branding more

if it was just a blog that's one thing, but i presume it's the app that's caused this if that's the logo connected to it

The only reason they're challenging this in the US only is, as pointed out earlier. To bankrupt the small company. The US law system requires both parties of a case to pay for thier own legal fees, even when you win a case.
So, if apple sue you. And you win. You can still be in the whole by hundreds of thousand, if not millions. It will backrupt most if they try to fight. So, most don't even try.

[BobF64]

Apple thinks people will confuse the two.

I can kinda see why they might think that.

I mean, if you were very poor sighted, drunk or stupid, the pear one looks a little tiny bit like the Apple logo if it was falling over.

If an Apple paid designer drew the Apple logo like the pear one, they should be fired on the spot.

To those of us with sense, the 2 are sufficiently different.

[Saracen999]

I can kinda see why they might think that.

I mean, if you were very poor sighted, drunk or stupid, the pear one looks a little tiny bit like the Apple logo if it was falling over.

If an Apple paid designer drew the Apple logo like the pear one, they should be fired on the spot.

To those of us with sense, the 2 are sufficiently different.

To anyone that can't tell the difference between those two logos, I would suggest taking a normal person with them next time they go shopping. Otherwise, they might fail to notice the difference between a banana and a dogpile, with unfortunate consequences.

Mind you, watching them try to peel the latter ..... <shudder>


PS. Yes, I appreciate not many shops sell dogpiles, but they may get distracted en-route by a free 'banana'.

[ik9000]

PS. Yes, I appreciate not many shops sell dogpiles.

Do you reckon there's a market for it? If I lose my job I'm happy to give it a go. I mean people pay for lame apps and online gambling so clearly some people are content to shell-out for sheet. Doubly so if the box has a certain fruit logo on it.

[Ttaskmaster]

Do you reckon there's a market for it? If I lose my job I'm happy to give it a go.

I am a supplier....
I'll also only charge 12% commission instead of 30%.

[Saracen999]

Do you reckon there's a market for it? If I lose my job I'm happy to give it a go. I mean people pay for lame apps and online gambling so clearly some people are content to shell-out for sheet. Doubly so if the box has a certain fruit logo on it.

Judging by some of what I see online, yes, if you market it well. There would seem to be a distinct resemblance to some online reviews I've wasted minutes of my life checking out.

[BobF64]

To anyone that can't tell the difference between those two logos, I would suggest taking a normal person with them next time they go shopping.

I think part of the problem is that lawyers, and sometimes others, don't actually look at the logo as it is, they look at it much more vaguely, such as "if you cut both out and only saw a shadow of both, would they look similar", and similar is awfully vague.

They both have edges, and fit in a circle, that's similar!

[ExusEngineer]

That's downright ridiculous come on

[DarrenParker]

I hope apple will win.

[Unique]

The only reason they're challenging this in the US only is, as pointed out earlier. To bankrupt the small company. The US law system requires both parties of a case to pay for thier own legal fees, even when you win a case.
So, if apple sue you. And you win. You can still be in the whole by hundreds of thousand, if not millions. It will backrupt most if they try to fight. So, most don't even try.

i don't think that's the case at all. i think protecting their rights is the main reason, just as i mentioned before. what you've said is a consequence. why would apple want to bankrupt them? if the logo was a black square, do you think apple would have wanted to bankrupt them?

they already had to pay a lot of money to the other apple in legal fees so their logo came at a cost, and they don't want people using logos that could could be confused with apple or make a mockery of apple and bring the reputation down. if they don't protect each logo they consider infringing, they could face problems further down the line if challenging a company in court and it's brought up that they chose to do nothing with other similar logos, which threatens potential future cases that could have a greater impact. whether apple win this one or not is perhaps not particularly important to them as much as the point of taking action in the first place

[AC81]

i don't think that's the case at all. i think protecting their rights is the main reason, just as i mentioned before. what you've said is a consequence. why would apple want to bankrupt them? if the logo was a black square, do you think apple would have wanted to bankrupt them?

they already had to pay a lot of money to the other apple in legal fees so their logo came at a cost, and they don't want people using logos that could could be confused with apple or make a mockery of apple and bring the reputation down. if they don't protect each logo they consider infringing, they could face problems further down the line if challenging a company in court and it's brought up that they chose to do nothing with other similar logos, which threatens potential future cases that could have a greater impact. whether apple win this one or not is perhaps not particularly important to them as much as the point of taking action in the first place

Google 'Apple slap suit'
Plenty shows up. Apple have a reputation for frivilous law suits.
I don't beleive these tax dodgers are protecting their own IP at all.
And, if it really was about protecting thier own rights. Then law suits would appear in every nation where the app is available. But, they're not. So, presuming the company can survive this slap suit. Then, they can still carry on in every other nation as 'pear' Why didn't apple lodge objections to the brand/logo in the UK?

[Saracen999]

I think part of the problem is that lawyers, and sometimes others, don't actually look at the logo as it is, they look at it much more vaguely, such as "if you cut both out and only saw a shadow of both, would they look similar", and similar is awfully vague.

They both have edges, and fit in a circle, that's similar!

Not disagreeing, but "similar" is one of those words that is tricky, legally, like "reasonable" in "reasonable force".

To double up, I would argue that in order for "similar" to be sufficiently similar, a "reasonable person" would have to be reasonably likely to mistake the one for the other. Which I find dubious, to say the least.

But as has already been established, there's two ways to win a legal case. One, by convincing a judge (or perhaps jury in some cases), but second, and far more pernicious, is legal bullying of someone that can't afford it by someone that can.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I can kinda see why they might think that.

I mean, if you were very poor sighted, drunk or stupid, the pear one looks a little tiny bit like the Apple logo if it was falling over.

If an Apple paid designer drew the Apple logo like the pear one, they should be fired on the spot.

To those of us with sense, the 2 are sufficiently different.

They must be wearing iGlasses??