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(2006), [2006] EWHC 996 (Ch. Div.) (08 May 2006)
* Breach of Trade-mark Agreement in particular clause 4.2
* Trade Mark - Co-existence Agreement between Apple Computer and Apple Corps - Demarcation of each company's field of use - Issue of whether breach had occurred to be determined based on appearance of marks and impression conveyed through use of the marks - Use of mark found to be limited to the permitted field of use and not a breach of Co-existence Agreement
INTRODUCTION
The recent English case of Apple Corps Ltd. v. Apple Computer, Inc." is the product of an ongoing battle between the two panics. At the heart of this case is a claim by Apple Corps (Acorps) of a breach of a Trade-Mark Agreement (TMA) made between parties in 1991.
Acorps is a record company that owns the rights to a large number of Beatles recordings and whose principal business is the continued exploitation of those rights in various ways.
Apple Computer, Inc. (Acomputer) is a well-known computer and software company.
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Acorps was originally incorporated as The Beatles Limited in June 1963. It subsequently changed its name to Apple Music Limited and to its present name in 1968. The graphic symbol of the sideways view of a whole apple has been an important part of Acorps' business since 1968.
Acomputer was set up in 1976 to produce the Apple I and II computers and has continued to develop computers and software since its inception. Acomputer had adopted an apple mark which consisted of a stylized apple with a bite taken out of it.
For many yean, there has been an ongoing legal battle between the two parties. In 1981, an agreement was entered into between the two parties regarding use and registration of the word APPLE and the various apple logos and the restricted use of each other's mark in connection with each company's field of business. For example, Acomputer could not use the mark in connection with computer equipment adapted for the production or recording of music, and Acorps could not use its marks in connection with computers or computing systems.
Friction again arose in 1991 when Acorps took the position that Acomputer's activities were in breach of the...