Apple To Be Sued By Cisco Over iPhone Name

As first tipped by SmartHouse only minutes after the announcement by Apple of the iPhone Cisco has sued Apple for infringing on its “iPhone” trademark which was first registered in 2000.

Cisco said it was seeking an injunctive relief to prevent Apple from “infringing upon and deliberately copying and using” the trademark, which Cisco obtained in 2000 after acquiring Infogear. Infogear had previously owned the trademark and had sold iPhones for several years, it said.

Linksys, a division of Cisco, has been selling wireless products with the iPhone name since early last year, with new products added to the line in December.

On Tuesday, a Cisco spokeswoman said the company had been in discussions with Apple, and it believed Apple would agree to a final document and public statement concerning the trademark.

“Cisco entered into negotiations with Apple in good faith after Apple repeatedly asked permission to use Cisco’s iPhone name,” Mark Chandler, senior vice president and general counsel of Cisco, said in a statement.

“There is no doubt that Apple’s new phone is very exciting, but they should not be using our trademark without our permission.”

Shares in Apple, which could not immediately be reached for comment, fell 1.3 per cent in after-hours trade following the announcement.