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Subject: Swiss watchmaker Swatch has successfully opposed Apple’s registration of the trademark "iWatch" in the UK
Excerpt: English text from the archived bilingual edition · Chinese edition
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Swiss watchmaker Swatch has successfully opposed Apple’s registration of the trademark "iWatch" in the UK
The UK’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) upheld Swatch’s opposition, which was filed in March 2014
Swatch said the name "iWatch" was too similar to its own trademarks for the words "iSwatch" and "Swatch"
And by the time in launched its smartwatch, in 2015, Apple had decided to call its product "Apple Watch"
But should the California-based company wish to use the name "iWatch" in the UK at some point in future, it can now do so only with certain products
These include computer software and computer accessories - but not computer hardware, monitors, audio and video devices or cameras
This decision shows the difficulty global brands can have when it comes to launching a new product around the world, said Sharon Daboul, a trademark lawyer at law firm EIP
Trademarks are territorial, which means that a trademark must be available for registration in every country of interest
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