“Apple today suffered another setback in securing the legal rights to one of its product names outside the U.S.,” Josh Lowensohn reports for CNET. “In a ruling this week, The Mexico Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision to keep granting ownership of the iPhone name to a company named Ifone SA.”
“Ifone SA registered the moniker in 2003, four years before Apple launched its popular smartphone,” Lowensohn reports. “Ifone SA has its own “Ifone” brand, though no smartphone product. In its own legal offensive, filed with the Industrial Property Institute, Ifone is going after Apple as well as three local mobile phone carriers for monetary damages.”
Read more in the full article here.
Mexico is corrupt in every way one can imagine.
If they had it first, they own it there. This is nothing new, and all global businesses deal with this eventually.
That’s why AAPL has $140 billion in the bank. The trouble is ifone knows this. That’s capitalism!
mmmmm I’m not sure I follow your logic. If it was registered to a Mexican company four years before Apple introduced their iPhone then what’s your point? They did something evil by coming up with a name before Apple? They somehow looked into a crystal ball and knew that Apple was going to call it the iPhone? Please, quit it. If Apple wants to buy it they can. If they choose not to they don’t have to. It’s as simple as that. But it has nothing to do with an evil plot. Or scheme. Or conspiracy. Jeez!
Stop making sense, it hurts my brain! 😉
To communicate with silverhawk more effectively I suggest using monosyllabic words.
I would agree if they had the name before iMac and iPod any iDevice name after that is just squatting hoping Apples next device uses the name they grabbed.
almost as bad as Washington DC.
why, who owns that?
Arms manufacturers and big pharmaceuticals
Aye, yay, yay phone!
No iPhone for you, Jose.
Huh???? “In a ruling this week, The Mexico Supreme Court upheld a lower court’s decision to keep granting ownership of the iPhone name to a company named Ifone SA,”
Doesn’t sound like the iPhone name is in peril, I think that Ifone of Mexico will be able to keep the name, so it’s not really in peril is it? Now if the Mexican supreme court was contemplating removing the iPhone name from both Apple AND IFone then it would be in peril. Darn poor reporting if you ask me.
Maybe in Mexico it should be called the “ay, chihuahua phone”
No one registered that yet.
I was thinking a more appropriate name in Mexico would be the “Press 1 for Englsh” phone.
It’s always the same. Some wetbacks have a budget deficit or some Mexican judge’s hedonistic lifestyle is being curtailed by the lack of funds so what happens? They put their heads together and brainstorm. “What can we do with the gringos American dollars? How can we extort them for more Americano dollars? Yeah we’ll make them pay us. And we don’t want it in banana republic pesos either. Only hard gringo dollars. Muchos gracias Apple.”
Do they grow a lot of bananas in Mexico? This is news to me.
Yeah in the Yucatan area, it a tropical zone there. Thats where Mexico borders Guatemala and thw reat of Central America.
Budget deficits, corrupt officials, crooked high-level schemes. It’s the same in every country, especially in the US (where the banksters rule supreme). And American dollars will soon be equal to banana republic currency thanks to banana-republic money-printing. However, I think that if some country gets behind an extorting company, Apple should pick up its toys and not sell in that country, not officially, that is.
Hey stupid! They ( Mexican company) had the fucking name first. Quit being an apologist for Apple. They didn’t ask you to do it. They don’t need your help. And you’re really bad at it. Who the fuck are you trying to impress with all this shit anyway? If Apple wants to buy it they will. If it’s for sale. Idiot!
Apple Should use one of the other names it Does own for Phones in Countries that have issues like this. Make a low cost Version branding it something else.
These clueless losers were riding on the popularity of the iMac and iPod. Pure and simple. They used the brand names Apple made popular to boost their product.
No offense to those that are going to defend them, but it was a money grab no matter what they were going to try and do with the name or “product” that they made.
No Jiggas for you!
Apple could use the “iTelefono” instead.
Another low life looking for quick $$$’s. Is anyone surprised?
What the hell is the problem?
It may sound alike… but it is a different writing. Typo is also different, so why make a bother out of it?
Yes, i know, Apple has also forbidden some Logos with an apple or a similar type of apple leaf representation… Well: let’s see how it all comes out in the end.
Exactly. Just try coming out with a logo that looks anything at all like the Apple logo and see how many high-priced lawyers go right up your ass! Apple isn’t some little mom-and-pop company. Apple will fuck you up if you get anything that even looks or sounds like an Apple name or appearance. They’ll crush you, intimidate you, or take you to court and bleed you dry. Folks here seem to forget that Apple is the biggest company out there. And they’ll put you out of business in a millisecond if it serves their purpose. And they won’t think anything of it. No remorse at all. They didn’t get this big by being nice to everyone. So if you fanboys feel the need to waste your time defending a company, defend some little company in your neighborhood that is being unjustly hounded by a large corporation. The biggest company in the world doesn’t need anyone’s help defending it. Help the little company if it’s in the right. Better yet, spend your energy doing something constructive like volunteering at the Salvation Army. Stop acting like you’re some sort of fucking hero by defending a company that wouldn’t stop to help you change a flat tire. It’s not like you’re defending your mother against some bad guys. Just stop it. Grow up. Get a fucking life! Morons.
“Grow up. Get a fucking life! Morons.”
Ironic considering you waste as much time here on MDN as the supposed morons do. Moron.
Touch a nerve did I fanboy? We all noticed that you didn’t address my comments. Pusscakes.
iPhone for Mexico
There done.
Any other countries see above. No more money for you.
Just call it the iCucaracha. After all, it is the true symbol of Mexico.
They should name it “The Telephone formerly known as iPhone”
Apple is just a bully and think they r entitle to whatever they want.
Just buy the company and shut it down. What would it cost? Prolly like 5 minutes of profit. Big deal