Apple and Amazon Settle 'App Store' Dispute
The long dispute between Apple and Amazon over the term "App Store" has come to an end, with Apple agreeing to end the lawsuit with promises from Amazon not to countersue, reports Reuters.
"We no longer see a need to pursue our case," Apple spokeswoman Kristin Huguet said. "With more than 900,000 apps and 50 billion downloads, customers know where they can purchase their favorite apps."
Martin Glick, a lawyer for Amazon, said in an interview, "This was a decision by Apple to unilaterally abandon the case, and leave Amazon free to use 'appstore.'"
Apple and Amazon's disagreement arose after Amazon debuted the "Amazon Appstore" in March of 2011, three years after Apple launched its own App Store. Apple sued just days after the Amazon Appstore was made available, asking the court to prevent Amazon from using the term as it tarnished the reputation of the Apple App Store.
Amazon responded with a request to throw out the trademark suit, calling the "app store" term generic, a position that Microsoft also took when Apple's trademark was originally filed.
Early this year, Amazon successfully had a portion of Apple’s lawsuit dismissed, following claims last year that Apple had failed to demonstrate "real evidence of actual confusion" between app stores, suggesting that Apple was "not likely to prevail" in the suit.
Popular Stories
The iPad will no longer be able to be used as a home hub following the launch of iOS 16, iPadOS 16, macOS Ventura, and the HomePod 16 software this fall, Apple confirmed today.
As discovered in iOS 16 code by MacRumors contributor Steve Moser, Apple says that the iPad will no longer be supported as a home hub. This information will be displayed in the Home app after updating to iOS 16.A home ...
CEO Tim Cook this week did an interview with China Daily, where he once again commented on on the future of augmented reality and hinted at Apple's work on an AR/VR headset. Render via designer Ian Zelbo Cook said that Apple is excited about the opportunities available with augmented reality, which is not too far off from prior comments that he's made, but he went on to say that people should ...
Apple today seeded the second betas of iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 to developers for testing purposes, and the new betas introduce new features and refine some of the changes that Apple made with the first iOS 16 release.
Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Lock Screen Photo Wallpaper Customization
When customizing a photo on the Lock Screen, there are two new DuoTone and...
Since the release of iOS 14.2 in 2020, the iPhone has included a built-in Music Recognition feature in Control Center powered by Shazam. And with iOS 16, and also the iOS 15.6 beta, the feature has received a small but useful upgrade.
As noted by Twitter user @someone_andrew, songs identified with Music Recognition in Control Center finally sync with the Shazam app.
It also remains...
Apple today launched its annual "Back to School" promotion for college/university students in the United States and Canada. This year's promotion offers a free Apple gift card with the purchase of an eligible Mac or iPad, rather than free AirPods like last year. Apple is also offering students 20% off AppleCare+ plans during the promotion.
Apple is offering a $150 gift card with the purchase ...
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 updates to developers for testing purposes, with the updates coming two weeks after Apple unveiled the new software at WWDC and released the initial betas.
Registered developers can download the iOS and iPadOS 16 profiles from the Apple Developer Center, and once installed, the betas will be available over the air. Given...
Apple is "likely" to announce its long-rumored mixed-reality headset as soon as January 2023, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has reiterated.
Concept render based on purported leaked information by Ian Zelbo In a detailed post on Medium, Kuo explained that Apple's headset will be a "game-changer" for the augmented-reality and virtual-reality market. Describing some of the headset's...
Top Rated Comments
Wrong.
Amazon wanted to call it appstore. Apple didn't want them to call it appstore.
Amazon gets to call it appstore.
Amazon wins.
Who the hell are you trying to fool here? We get it, you're a die hard fan of Apple, we all love Apple but we're not all so stuborn that we cant admit when Apple looses out.
The facts are:
- Amazon wanted to be able to legally use the term 'Appstore'
- Apple didn't want them to be able to do that.
- Apple gave up in the end.
- Amazon got what they wanted from the get go.
You can come up with ifs and buts all day long, but the fact is, Amazon won.
In this case it was very sensible given how stupid it was in the first place. There was no way in hell Apple would get the rights to take control of 'Appstore' as a term.
----------
Uh yes. It was an Amazon win. Amazon wanted to use the term - and now they can. Amazon win, regardless of how you put it. It had nothing to do with sales figures or statistics, it was the naming.
Amazon won - fact.
Yes, Amazon won, Apple lost.