Cisco Sues Apple
 

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2007/01/10/D8MIN5CO0.html

I guess Apple's lawyers didn't have everything covered. The articles says Cisco has had the trademark since 2000. Apple even knew beforehand. What did they think would happen?

They probably figured that there's no such thing as bad publicity, especially when it comes to a product name. Maybe now they'll have a contest to rename the phone. :D

My guess (highly drenched in conspiracy juice), is that when Jobs learned of the conflict he decided to push ahead "knowing" Apple and Cisco would come to an agreement before MacWorld.

Jobs being the tyrant he is probly low-balled Chambers...pushing his iWeight around. Chambers gave Jobs the bird since Cisco has had the trademark for 4+ years.

IINAL, but I don't see any way for Apple to get out of this aside from them giving Cisco a boat load of cash, stocks, and a lof of, um...iPhones :D

Especially when the publicity highlights the fact that the Cisco iPhone isn't an Apple product but is trying to piggyback on the success of the "i" branding.

And it was a darn good iDea. :D

Yes, a company like Apple is not that corporately dumb. There will be a strategy at play here. That said, I can't work it out at the moment.

Free advertising/name awareness, well OK, but this is an appallingly arrogant step. Cisco's iPhone is a current product!

Time will tell....

Gavin

Except that Infogear had the "iPhone" name trademarked in 1996, way before the iMac. Cisco acquired Infogear in 2000 and as such, owns a trademark that existed before Steve Jobs even came back to Apple. Cisco is defending their trademarks, which is something they have to do, as a company with other trademark holdings.

Do you complain when third parties make iPod or Mac products with "i" in the title?

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From a marketing perspective, I think Apple’s move is brilliant.

First: The iBrands are so strongly identified with Apple that others’ use of them is often perceived as encroachment. (Recall public reaction to Cisco’s launch of iPhone: “Get off the stage!”)

Second: Apple has entered into negotiations with Cisco and has not been given the bird. That means they’re open-minded.

Third: Steve Jobs’ presentation of the Apple iPhone’s brilliant design and functionality basically kills the Cisco iPhone as a product. Why? If Cisco insists on hang onto the brand, the market will forever think of what the iPhone could and should have been. For Cisco, it’s dead.

Fourth: A lawsuit (which I’m 110% sure won’t be decided in the courts, hence my offer to bet Tom Larkin) just gives Apple and their iPhone added publicity.

Conclusion: Everybody wins. Apple acquires brand name. Cisco acquires bucket full of cash. Apple wins free marketing worth far more than cash paid.


Cisco’s move is pre-settlement posturing.

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iPosture.

iMagine that.

iSeriously, iGuys, iThis iJoke iStopped iBeing iFunny iFour iYears iAgo.

Hey, I resemble that remark! :)

A good bet on what the problem is:

http://news.com.com/Why+cant+Apple%2...3-6149663.html

Don't you mean: iresemble?

In all honesty you think they didn't know
 

My guess is they've been trying to buy the rights for months from cisco, cisco was strongarming them because of the whole "Ieverything", and knew how desperatley they wanted it.
Apple's betting that cisco will break before they get labeled the big bad bully for picking on the computer nerds from cali. Apple better be carefull though, cisco has what 86% of their market share that's real money.

I did, but he had said, enough's enough.

Back on topic...

I have to say, Apple is a great company and all, but they screwed up this time. I think a good name for the iPhone would be the MacPhone or the ApplePhone.

I would have preferred MacPhone since the phone IS running a form of Mac OS X...

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Thought experiment:

Steve acquiesces. Name change to Apple Phone.
Does anyone imagine that leaving Cisco a winner?

I think it's a publicity move by both parties, with agreement between them.

And they lived happily ever after . . . :)
- http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2007/02/21iphone.html

I'm sure most of you have heard this news. I wonder what "interoperability" will be like?

It will most likely be nobody ever hearing of a Cisco iPhone. :)

Apple Tech: Let's see, opportunities... Nope can't see any. Ok, see ya Cisco.

has anyone got any links or ideas as to how co-operative mac os x on say a macbook is going to be with the iPhone, everything from making calls to backing up contacts etc?

Saving face?
 

That may be about it. I do wonder if that formulation isn’t meant as a face-saving measure for Cisco, after they realized they had nothing to win? It’s difficult for me to envisage Apple making significant strategic compromises.

I am also cynical enough to suspect that Carlos is right. The threat of a lawsuit and the public noise we’ve heard may well have been part of an agreed-upon game to gain valuable PR for both parties. Why not, as long as journalists play along and it’s free?