Apple applies for iWatch trademark

Filings in Japan and Russia spark
rumours that company may be
preparing to introduce a wearable
technology product
Apple CEO Tim Cook has not ruled out
the idea of the company introducing a
wearable tecjnology device.
Photograph: Kevork Djansezian/Getty
Images
Charles Arthur
Apple has filed for ownership of the
"iWatch" trademark in Japan,
suggesting that the company could be
preparing either to introduce a
wearable technology or a product
relating to the TV business.
The Wall Street Journal reports that
the application was made there on 3
June, and made public on 27 June.
Izvestia reported that it applied for the
same trademark in Russia in June.
However, it does not appear to have
registered the name in Europe, where
an Italian company owns the
trademark.
Registering a trademark is usually an
essential step made ahead of the
launch of a product in order to prevent
rivals from registering the same name
and creating an embarrassing and
costly legal clash. The name of
Apple's iPod was first discovered from
trademark filings ahead of its launch
in October 2001 – though it trampled
over Cisco's "iPhone" trademark in
2007 when it launched its phone that
January. The two companies later
came to an agreement.
There have been rising expectations –
after a growing hiatus since October,
during which it has not released any
new devices – that Apple will
introduce either a watch-style device
or some form of TV-compatible
device.
The idea of an iWatch that would offer
a wearable system able to connect to
a smartphone has raised interest, with
a number of media outlets saying the
company has a huge team of
engineers working on such a product.
Wearable technology such as Google
Glass, now in beta testing with
thousands of "explorers" in the US,
and Pebble's Bluetooth-connected
watch, has become a hot new item.
Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive,
didn't rule out the idea of such a
product when he appeared at the
AllThingsD conference earlier this
year.
Alternatively, the "watch" element of
the name could relate to a TV-related
product. Analysts have expected Apple
to make a move in the television
space, but with margins on sets very
thin and replacement cycles low – at
about 10% per year – have been
unable to think of what it might do.
Benedict Evans of Enders Analysis has
suggested that Apple could introduce
an HDMI-powered dongle with the
ability to use TV signals. But the
company has given no indication of its
intentions, and there has been no
industry chatter from TV content
providers that would indicate a product
was on the way.
So far there is no record of a similar
iWatch trademark filing from Apple in
Europe. An EC trademark database
search on iWatch turns up three
results , with the ownership being held
by Probendi of Italy and filed in 2008.
The other two applications were made
after Probendi's, and were either
opposed or withdrawn.
Probendi's iWatch application is a
mobile-phone application which sends
real-time information to an emergency
support system.