Brazilian regulators, Institute of Industrial Property, have ruled that Apple does not hold exclusive rights to the “iPhone” trademark in the country. The ruling is the result of a local company, Gradiente Eletronica, registering the name in 2000, long before the iPhone was released in 2007. The Cupertino giant has already lodged an appeal against the decision with the Brazilian regulators.

Apple can still continue to sell its iPhone-branded handsets in Brazil, but it just does not hold exclusive rights to the name anymore. The decision also means that Gradiente Electronica has an option of suing for exclusivity in South America’s biggest market, but that depends on whether they want to pursue the case or not. The decision applies only to mobile handsets, Apple will still have exclusive rights to use the iPhone name elsewhere including on clothing, in software and across various publications.

Gradiente Electronica, a Manaus-headquartered company, now sells its Android-powered iPhone Neo One for 599 reals ($304; £196). The Android-based “iphone” was released late last year by the firm and Apple had immediately lodged a complain against using its “iPhone” trademark. Apple had also lost an appeal to halt sales of the “iFone” device in Mexico last year.

Source: BBC News

Salman Ravoof

Salman Ravoof is a freelance writer, a mechanical engineer and an avid science and technology enthusiast. He likes creativity and is a great fan of fantasy and sci-fi genre. When not busy, he revels in experimenting and spends most of his time pondering about the existence of reality.

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