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Apple Sued Over Rendezvous Trademark
bdsesq writes "The Register is reporting that Tibco is suing Apple over the name 'Rendezvous'. Tibco has owned the name since 1994. It seems that Apple doesn't want to pay what Tibco wants."
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So can a company trademark single words in a foreign language? What do the French think of this? I'd think it'd be like trademarking a word such as "travel".
"Common Sense Ain't" -Unknown
RTFA. No it doesn't. tibco's is a messaging system, apple's is a configuration system.
The "Rendezvous" software of Tibco is messaging software. Apple's is networking configuration. There doesn't seem to be any real attempt of Apple to capitalize on Tibco's reputation (because, naturally, Apple is some upstart company trying to leech off of the mighty Tibco...).
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w s/news_story.php?id=46737
After all, wasn't this case sort of settled with the battle of Apple Records versus Apple Computer - there's not likely to be confusion in the products, and the Apple Records name had a hell of a lot more influence than Tibco does now.
A couple more news stories on this, more reputable but not much more information:
http://www.smartmoney.com/bn/ON/index.cfm?story=O
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/?http://www.pcpro.co.uk/ne
A major point of debate in trademark disagreements is confusion. Will Apple's use of Rendezvous be confusing to people who are familiar with TIBCO's use of Rendezvous? The answer is clearly no: TIBCO's Rendezvous is a messaging solution that's part of their enterprise blah-blah-ware system. Apple's Rendezvous is a network configuration and service advertisement technology. The only thing they have in common, and I mean this quite literally, is that they both involve computers.
No case. Five gets you ten the case never goes to court.
The USPTO website shows 22 hits for the word 'RENDEZVOUS'
The oldest being Mother's Cake & Cookies Co. (1966)
I'm sure they'll rendezvous many times to resolve this.
He who laughs last is stuck in a time dilation bubble.
maybe apple should just go back to calling it zeroconf. that sounds so much cooler anyways...
I'll turn into a supernova and burn up everything. Well I'll turn into a black little hole and you'll turn into string.
Just rename it iRendezvous.
I cant even sey 'rendezvous'!!!
\m/
since when is laziness flaming?
Let he who read all the articles throw the first stone
(lots of slashdotters mumbling behind their false beards and looking at their feet, half crazed AC jumping and shouting "Bill Gates, Bill Gates, Praise the Lord")
And anyhow, it is not as muddied as some think.
Whatever the differences between the two rendezvous thingies, they share something very important for both companies, which is making it easy for different computers to talk to each other.
That's a lot more confusing than Apple the nice computer that stumbled out of a garage and Apple the bloody Beatles record label.
Look ma, no hands!
I think, therefore I am...I think.
If it were not AC, I'd definitely try to mod this one up as being funny as hell!
I think, therefore I am...I think.
Oh what planet? Somebody needs to inform the... what are you calling yourselves? Nerds? Whatever you call yourselves, somebody needs to inform you that names like "zeroconf" and "mozilla" are not good. They are not cool. They are not useful or acceptable.
Losers.
Apple isn't even selling Rendezvous as a product! It costs nothing to implement and its specifications and quite a bit of example code for it are open to the public to use. I don't see how Apple is capitalizing on anything when there is no capital involved, except perhaps that which was used to develop the technology.
'Scuse me? Not useful or (heh) acceptable?
You may be unclear as to who needs to get a life here.
Tibco has owned the name since 1994. It seems that Apple doesn't want to pay what Tibco wants."
Actually, that should read Tibico claims to have been using the name since 1994. Not owns. It is not a registered trademark, they merely applied for it. The process is not complete. In fact, they only filed for it May 21, 2003.
Tibico's Rendezvous
Apple filed for the name Rendezvous on May 6, 2002.
Apple's Rendezvous
Do I think this will really be a problem for Apple? No more than OS-9 and Mac OS 9.... at least those were both Operating Systems, in some sense.
The remark is, of course, ludicrous. Tidco's is a messaging system having nothing to do with Zeroconf:
e nt erprise/rv/default.jsp
http://www.tibco.com/solutions/products/active_
You know, like Apple, owned by Apple Computers, for computers. Like Apple, owned by Apple Records, for records.
But NOT Apple, for pie!
Like Be, for operating systems. But probably NOT for philosophical services.
So long as the mark is used in a distinctive, non-descriptive fashion, the mark can become proprietary on the day it is first used in commerce.
Funny thing, "rendez vous" also means "surrender!"
Now, before you make jokes about France and surrender, I'm not French!
http://www.club977.com/ - The 80's Channel!
Your source for commercial free 80's music!
A few years back Apple decided to call their new internet service "iTools" a name that Tenon had a TM on for 2 years at that point. Apple's response? "We can both use it...they are different."
I'm not sure if it was because of Tenon that Apple changed it to ".Mac" but it was a pretty shitty thing to do to Tenon. iTools is a great product.
My
In fact, there are lots of ways that these things happen, and most of them are documented in the 1998 book, Hoo Boy! Here We Go Again!: Apple's Purity Explained To Its Critics Again by the Apple Board of Directors (with a foreward by the Virgin Mary). Time and again, when viewed through any objective lens, the bottom line turns out to be that Apple is incapable of wrong, and that covers both earthly and heavenly law. If the space-time continuum puckers just long enough for an exception to this rule, the elephants who bear the world on their shoulders will have sneezing fits, so don't even go there.
iChat is for human-to-human messaging; TIBCO's Rendezvous product is for program-to-program messaging as a behind the scenes multicast transport for all kinds of applications. Think "broadcasting real-time stock prices to trader's workstations."
Tibco actually probably has a case here. I'm not saying it's right, but a messaging application and a network protocol are probably close enough to cause confusion or at least be enough to look into. Using my previous example, I could start a record store called "Kleenex Records" and probably get away with it since Kleenex-brand tissues and Kleenex Records are different enough markets/products that it shouldn't cause consumer confusion. I'd still get sued by the makers of Kleenex-brand tissues, but I'd probably have a stronger case than Apple.
psxndc
The emacs religion: to be saved, control excess.
I suppose that to someone who knows nothing about computers and networks, a network configuration system might appear to be the same thing as a messaging system. With that caveat, I must point out that a better analogy would be for McDonalds to sue McData for copyright infringement, because customers go to McData expecting to buy a tasty snack and end up buying high-end networking equipment, thus siphoning off McDonalds' business.
Of course, "ZeroConf" is a more descriptive name than "Rendezvous", but that's none of my business.
The fact that he made 'sey' BOLD doesn't tell you that was a joke? Get it? the -de- in rendezvous is pronounced like the ey in sey?
Of course, he makes more fun of you by thanking you for your assistance...good stuff. :-)
Lose essential liberties to get temporary safety = get only hassles and security theater.
NO, It's as if McDonald's (the fast food restaurant) sued a grocery store called McDonald's. OR it would be like a computer company suing another computer company under tradedress laws for making a computer that is functionally different but similar (albeit ugly) in appearance. Oh wait, Apple already did that when they sued eMachines! I love Apple as much as the next guy, but face it, Apple is NOT always a bastion of love for the little guy-- sometimes they run right over them just like many other corporations. Remember, their fiduciary responsibility isn't to look out for the little guy, it's to make cash and plenty of it. Repeat after me: "Apple is great, but Apple CAN do wrong."
They can't have been blind to the boatload of free advertising for their otherwise invisible product that such a move would garner. The legal fees are much cheaper than an ad campaign.
Actually, I recall that earlier this year there was a little flap with Apple Records over the iTunes Store.
http://www.macnn.com/news/19643&startNumber=33
Seems that in 1981 Apple (Computer) had promised Apple (Records) that they wouldn't go into the music business so that they wouldn't drag the young Apple (Computer) to court.
Zeroconf and Rendezvous are different. That's what.
/= IEEE's zeroconf.
Zerconf is a standard, Rendezvous is one implementation of that standard. So Rendezvous provides a set of APIs and services that can be used in software products.
Hence to simply name it the underlying standard would probably end up being confusing and misleading. That's why Apple's rendezvous
Pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will! - Antonio Gramsci.
Tibco has a trademark for use of a word in a specific context. They have a right to market their product using this work and not have their marketing screwed by people getting the product they are marketing mixed up with any other product.
Think for a second of a non-computer nerd: s/he knows nothing about zero configuration blah blah software _or_ "enterprise blah-blah-ware". One network software that doesn't require you to put in those funny number thingies to do things like chatting. The other one lets you set up meetings with fellow workers without having to muck around with settings. Hmm.. yup, sounds potentially confusing.
Pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will! - Antonio Gramsci.
Off the top of your head...
1. Name one Tibco product that uses Rendezvous.
2. Name one Apple product that uses Rendezvous.
Anyone else here play Magic? Since, say, 5th Edition? Remember "fizzle" and "summoning sickness"?
For those who don't, the point is this: even if Apple is forced to change the name, "Rendezvous" at this point is probably pervasive enough to still be called that by the people who use the products that use Rendezvous.
On the other hand, Xerox is a registered trademark. Can anyone xerox this document for me? The Canon photocopier is in the next room.