01.09.2010
Kanji Of The Month — September 2010
判断
Reading: handan
Translation: judgment; decision
Click here for an archive of previous Kanji of the month.
23.02.2010
Apple’s Shadow Trademarks In Japan
On January 27, 2010, Apple Inc. introduced its new tablet PC called “iPad”. During the weeks leading up to the official date of announcement, the Internet was rife with speculation about the name of Apple’s new product. Slate Computing LLC, an affiliate of Apple Inc., had filed for the name “iSlate” in Canada, and followed up with an appliation for “iPad” shortly after.
Both applications were filed at the same time in Japan as well (reg. no. 5050480 iSlate and application no. 2009-058254 iPad). Another trademark — “Magic Slate” — was also registered as a combined trademark of Japanese kana and Latin letters (reg. no. 5221312), but it is not yet clear whether Apple is going to use the name for a product associated with the iPad.
Fujitsu K.K. has been mentioned recently as a possible contender for the name, however, there seems to be no Japanese trademark registration of “iPad” in the name of Fujitsu. The question of whether the name has gained any form of protection as a trade name will without doubt be the subject of further negotiations between the companies involved.
Apple has already met similar problems when trying to register the name iPhone in Japan.
03.12.2009
Kanji Of The Month — December 2009
国際機関
Reading: kokusaikikan
Translation: international organization
Click here for an archive of previous Kanji of the month.
09.11.2009
Kanji Of The Month — November 2009
仲裁
Reading: chûsai
Translation: arbitration
Click here for an archive of previous Kanji of the month.
02.09.2009
Summer greetings from the JPO
The JPO bids the summer farewell with some mid-year resolutions: The office announces its vision of becoming an organization with enthusiastic people who can flexibly and quickly respond to changes in the IP environment.
This is going to be interesting …
