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In March of 2011, Amazon launched its own service for users to find available apps in one location. The company called it the “appstore” and Apple quickly filed a trademark lawsuit. It didn’t take long for rumors to start that the U.S. District court set to hear the case would probably throw the whole thing out.
In January, Judge Phyllis Hamilton dismissed the false advertising claim that Apple included in its lawsuit because the court had decided that the use of the term “appstore” did not imply that Amazon was affiliated with the iPad maker. “The mere use of ‘Appstore’ … cannot be construed as a representation that the nature, characteristics, or quality of the Amazon Appstore is the same as that of the Apple App Store.”
Today, Judge Hamilton ordered the entire trademark lawsuit case to be dismissed at the companies’ request. This comes less than a month before the company was set to go to trial on August 19.
According to Reuters, Apple issued a covenant not to sue Amazon over the use of the term, appstore. In response, Amazon dropped its counterclaim seeking permission to use it.
“We no longer see a need to pursue our case,” Apple spokesperson Kristin Huguet said. “With more than 900,000 apps and 50 billion downloads, customers know where they can purchase their favorite apps.”
“We are gratified that the court has conclusively dismissed this case,” said Amazon spokesperson Mary Osako. “We look forward to continuing our focus on delivering the best possible appstore experience to customers and developers.”
It is good to see that, at least in this case, Apple and Amazon have decided to shake hands and agree. The patent litigations, especially from Apple, are getting ridiculous. Like many patent lawsuits, these types of antics discourage innovation and breed a culture of greedy patent trolls, even in the hearts of major corporations.
Hopefully, the tides have shifted and we will begin to see more collaboration on technology invention and development.
» Related posts:
Apple and Amazon Ordered to Play Nice in “App Store” Trademark Dispute
Apple and Amazon Continue the Legal Fight Over ‘App Store’ Term
Apple Loses First Battle with Amazon Over ‘Appstore’ Trademark
