War of words
Microsoft is trying to stop Apple from trade marking the term ‘app store' by arguing it is too generic for one company to take ownership of it.
Of course Apple's App Store is synonymous with the smartphone concept and the company first filed for trademark in 2008 when it was launched on the iPhone, The WSJ reported.
At the time, Apple apparently said its App Store comprised: "retail store services featuring computer software provided via the Internet and other computer and electronic communication networks," and has of course blossomed into the world's biggest marketplace for applications.
Apple's App Store has been cited as a catalyst for the success of the iPhone, with Google, RIM and Microsoft hastily launching their own equivalent app marketplaces to bolster their own smartphone platforms.
Microsoft launched a new app marketplace upon the relapse of its Windows Phone 7 OS and has reportedly said that Apple shouldn't be able to trademark ‘app store' as the term is already widely used by different companies to describe their application offerings.
Microsoft's associate general counsel, Russell Pangborn, reportedly said: "The term 'app store' should continue to be available for use by all without fear of reprisal by Apple. An app store is an app store."
According to the BBC, Microsoft has asked the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to reject Apple's application over a year after the USPTO invited companies that wanted to oppose Apple's application to make it known. It is not clear why Microsoft has picked its moment, although Apple has just launched its latest App Store for Mac users.
The FT has reported that in Microsoft's papers, the company said that a whole host of companies use the term, including: Google, Samsung, RIM, Palm and Nokia.
The newspaper said that Microsoft has even cheekily pointed out the Steve Jobs himself has used the term in a generic way before.
