In a decision handed down by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Apple has been denied an application for a trademark on the term Multi-Touch, reports “MacRumors” (http://www.macrumors.co).
Apple originally applied for the trademark on January 9, 2007, the day the iPhone was introduced. A lawyer for the USPTO denied Apple’s initial trademark application and the company appealed to the Appeal Board, says “MacRumors.”
The trademark attorney pointed out that the term “multitouch” has taken on generic meaning, being used by a wide variety of publications to describe the touchscreen technology on Android phones, tablets, and notebooks, the article adds.