The letter ‘i’ is causing a storm down under as a Kiwi is stuck in a legal battle with the mighty powers that are Apple Inc.
Hayden Crowther is the man behind the driPhone, a sturdy and waterproof case for smartphones of all shapes and sizes. However, the mighty powers that are Apple Inc. are opposing Mr Crowther’s plans to trademark the driPhone in New Zealand and they’ve asked him to change the letter ‘i’ to a ‘y’.
Mr Crowther was informed of the move through Wellington-based patent and trademark attorney firm Henry Hughes, however he thinks Apple has “little weight” to their opposition.
According to Apple, the driPhone name “would be likely to deceive or cause confusion” and was “contrary to New Zealand law”. It also objected because “the applicant’s trademark, or an essential element of it, is identical or similar to a trademark that is well-known in New Zealand [that being the iPhone]”, reports Stuff.co.nz.
However, Mr Crowther isn’t backing down and he said the driPhone logo took less space to design with the ‘i’ and it would be cheaper to fight Apple rather than change his whole product.
The case is still on going, but we kind of hope the little guy wins this time. Apple are just acting like spoilt brats at this stage.
