Cupertino-Based Apple, Beatles' Record Label, Argue Trademark Case

Cupertino, Calif. -- The Beatles' record label, Apple Corps, and Cupertino-based Apple  squared off in a London court on Wednesday over whether the iPod maker's iTunes Store breaches a trademark agreement that the company made with the label not to enter the record industry, the International Herald Tribune reported. While Apple maintains that it functions solely as a conduit for selling music recorded and distributed by other companies, Apple Corps' lawyers contend that the argument is undermined by iTunes' lack of interoperability, and its selling of exclusive songs and repackaged collections not available elsewhere. "The agreement was intended to say, 'We do music, you do computer software delivery systems,'" Apple Corps lawyer Geoffrey Vos said of the 1991 deal. "The moment you cross the line is when you say you're in the record business." Vos also said that in 2003, Apple Corps managing director Neil Aspinall turned down a $1 million offer from Apple CEO Steve Jobs to buy the rights the Apple Records name. Apple Corps is seeking the removal of Apple's apple-shaped logo from iTunes, in addition to unspecified damages.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/29/technology/29cnd-apple.html