In the ongoing legal fight in the U.S. between Apple and Amazon over the right to use “Appstore,” Amazon has now requested that the court dismiss Apple’s claim of false advertising.
Here’s a brief summary of the case to refresh your memory: Apple filed a trademark application for “App Store” in the U.S. in 2008. Microsoft filed an objection. Amazon then joined this legal mix when it launched the Amazon Android AppStore in 2011. Apple filed suit against Amazon to stop its use of “Appstore” and Amazon countersued.
Apple had claimed that Amazon’s use of the word “Appstore” should be considered false advertising. In its response last week, Amazon stated that it’s simply including the name of its store in its advertising. Amazon also noted the growing generic use of “app store”, pointing out that even the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs and current Apple CEO Tim Cook have used the phrase “the number of App Stores out there.”
Microsoft’s objection to Apple’s App Store trademark registration is still pending. Stay tuned …
