1) There was. People were starting to refer to all PMPs as iPods.
2) It look Apple a lot longer to get the lion's share of the PMP market than it did for them to get the lion's share of the tablet market.
3) This is always a concern for a company because they don't want anyone to be able to refer to anything as Coke or as an iPad. You have to fight to keep your Trademark intact but that doesn't mean it's in jeopardy simply because people are using it generically so long as you do your due diligence in protecting it.
The speed with which a thing becomes ubiquitous has no effect on trademark retention. As you note, it's up to the holder to be diligent. So why is there this sudden presumption that Apple will somehow let iPad slip away, but not iPod? I suggest it's the result of fuzzy thinking on the part of one person, followed by thoughtless parroting by people wishing to appear... thoughtful.
Well, Jeep and others are still legitimate trademarks so I don't know how you explain that.
People still do often refer to any SUV as a "Jeep" though. I went on a "Jeep Jungle Safari" on vacation this winter, the "Jeeps" were all Suzukis. With huge stickers that said "Jeep" on the doors. Chrysler may own the registered trademark, but the name was public domain long before they bought it.
Well, Jeep and others are still legitimate trademarks so I don't know how you explain that.
I don't think it's so much about a legitimate trademark as it is about public perception. Jeep is often seen as a class of vehicle,although I think that case might be less true these days. Band-Aid had a commercial a while back that used the jingle "I am stuck on Band-Aid brand cause Band-Aid's stuck on me". They put the word brand in there so people wouldn't buy another manufacturers bandages because everyone thinks of Band-Aid as a class of product.
1) There was. People were starting to refer to all PMPs as iPods.
2) It look Apple a lot longer to get the lion's share of the PMP market than it did for them to get the lion's share of the tablet market.
I think the two biggest factors with the iPod case were:
1) There really wasn't a universal name for these devices back then. Some were referred to as MP3 players, others as Portable Media Players, Digital Media Players, etc.
2) Regardless of which name was used, none of them were easily remembered by the general public. We may think 'MP3 Player' or 'PMP' is trivial to remember, but to the grandpas of the world, these were complex terms.
So when the iPod came along and became the best selling example of PMPs, everyone latched onto that name because it was short, easy to remember, and universally understood.
I don't see these factors at play with the iPad.
There already is a short, easy to remember, and universally understood name for these devices, i.e. tablets. (and the same can be said for the iPhone and smartphones in general) So I don't think there is a motive for the general public to rally around the iPad name.
I've experienced the reverse. I've talked with many people that say "tablet" and mean "iPad". I've never heard anyone say "iPad" referring to an alternatab.
That sounds like more of a problem for Best Buy. When that customer gets home and eventually realizes that they were misled and they were not actually sold an iPad, like their friends had told them about or shown them, or that they had heard amazing things about, then they are going to be pretty upset.
moot point... doesn't Best Buy have a return policy?... i know in Canada they do have a return policy no questions asked... so the end up getting pissed at Best Buy and have you go back and get the iPad instead of the "trashy product" they were duped into getting.
Apple can go straight to hell. Their new iPad won't work on ac power once the freaking battery drains. My girlfriend returned my new iPad this past weekend. The manager even over looked the 14 day return policy.
Oh, the screen is pure lust worthy. DAMN IT'S GORGEOUS! But the issue I mentioned couldn't be over looked. Expect a class action lawsuit and a media backlash bigger than antenagate.
Wow- like what did you have to wait like 2 minutes at most for the battery level to go from red to green before it powers on?
Where does it state that it would work if totally drained imediatedly anyway? Every iPod, iPhone and now iPad has always worked that way for me.
I think the two biggest factors with the iPod case were:
1) There really wasn't a universal name for these devices back then. Some were referred to as MP3 players, others as Portable Media Players, Digital Media Players, etc.
I think that's an excellent point. I think it's one of those thins most of us realize but for some reason never seem to bring up.
I use PMP as a universal, technical term for this forum but I would never use it as a general term. I'd use iPod or MP3 player. I certainly don't like to say MP3 player on this forum to refer to the PMP category here because it's less technical even though the context makes its usage clear.
Not until Apple used the term and some 9-year old snickered, and some people jumped to repeat the naughty joke, lacking other reasons to criticize the device
i recall that moment in time, yes.
sadly, the 'nine (9) year-old mentality' will persist amid online news / discussion groups regardless of company. Apple has been subject to it as well as Sony, Samsung, Microsoft, RIM, Google and dozens of others. it's the price we pay when only an email address is required to join a message board, not reason or civility.
Comments
1) There was. People were starting to refer to all PMPs as iPods.
2) It look Apple a lot longer to get the lion's share of the PMP market than it did for them to get the lion's share of the tablet market.
3) This is always a concern for a company because they don't want anyone to be able to refer to anything as Coke or as an iPad. You have to fight to keep your Trademark intact but that doesn't mean it's in jeopardy simply because people are using it generically so long as you do your due diligence in protecting it.
The speed with which a thing becomes ubiquitous has no effect on trademark retention. As you note, it's up to the holder to be diligent. So why is there this sudden presumption that Apple will somehow let iPad slip away, but not iPod? I suggest it's the result of fuzzy thinking on the part of one person, followed by thoughtless parroting by people wishing to appear... thoughtful.
Here's a short list of trademarks that have become generic terms.
Aspirin
Cellophane
Dry ice
Kerosene
Laundromat
Videotape
Bubble Wrap
Dumpster
Jeep
Ping Pong
Q-tips
Scotch tape
Styrofoam
Tarmac
Vaseline
Zipper
Well, Jeep and others are still legitimate trademarks so I don't know how you explain that.
Well, Jeep and others are still legitimate trademarks so I don't know how you explain that.
People still do often refer to any SUV as a "Jeep" though. I went on a "Jeep Jungle Safari" on vacation this winter, the "Jeeps" were all Suzukis. With huge stickers that said "Jeep" on the doors. Chrysler may own the registered trademark, but the name was public domain long before they bought it.
Well, Jeep and others are still legitimate trademarks so I don't know how you explain that.
I don't think it's so much about a legitimate trademark as it is about public perception. Jeep is often seen as a class of vehicle,although I think that case might be less true these days. Band-Aid had a commercial a while back that used the jingle "I am stuck on Band-Aid brand cause Band-Aid's stuck on me". They put the word brand in there so people wouldn't buy another manufacturers bandages because everyone thinks of Band-Aid as a class of product.
1) There was. People were starting to refer to all PMPs as iPods.
2) It look Apple a lot longer to get the lion's share of the PMP market than it did for them to get the lion's share of the tablet market.
I think the two biggest factors with the iPod case were:
1) There really wasn't a universal name for these devices back then. Some were referred to as MP3 players, others as Portable Media Players, Digital Media Players, etc.
2) Regardless of which name was used, none of them were easily remembered by the general public. We may think 'MP3 Player' or 'PMP' is trivial to remember, but to the grandpas of the world, these were complex terms.
So when the iPod came along and became the best selling example of PMPs, everyone latched onto that name because it was short, easy to remember, and universally understood.
I don't see these factors at play with the iPad.
There already is a short, easy to remember, and universally understood name for these devices, i.e. tablets. (and the same can be said for the iPhone and smartphones in general) So I don't think there is a motive for the general public to rally around the iPad name.
That sounds like more of a problem for Best Buy. When that customer gets home and eventually realizes that they were misled and they were not actually sold an iPad, like their friends had told them about or shown them, or that they had heard amazing things about, then they are going to be pretty upset.
moot point... doesn't Best Buy have a return policy?... i know in Canada they do have a return policy no questions asked... so the end up getting pissed at Best Buy and have you go back and get the iPad instead of the "trashy product" they were duped into getting.
dictated to my iPad
Here's a short list of trademarks that have become generic terms.
Aspirin
Cellophane
Dry ice
Kerosene
Laundromat
Videotape
Bubble Wrap
Dumpster
Jeep
Ping Pong
Q-tips
Scotch tape
Styrofoam
Tarmac
Vaseline
Zipper
You are wrong on a number of these:
Styrofoam:
http://building.dow.com/media/trademark.htm
Jeep:
http://www.rockcrawler.com/features/...y/dc_vs_gm.pdf
Q-tips:
http://www.rockcrawler.com/features/...y/dc_vs_gm.pdf
Scotch Tape:
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Scotch+Tape
Vaseline:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Vaseline_Logo.svg
(Although it is considered generic in Spanish and Portuguese according to one report I read).
You are correct about the rest, AFAICT.
Apple can go straight to hell. Their new iPad won't work on ac power once the freaking battery drains. My girlfriend returned my new iPad this past weekend. The manager even over looked the 14 day return policy.
Oh, the screen is pure lust worthy. DAMN IT'S GORGEOUS! But the issue I mentioned couldn't be over looked. Expect a class action lawsuit and a media backlash bigger than antenagate.
Wow- like what did you have to wait like 2 minutes at most for the battery level to go from red to green before it powers on?
Where does it state that it would work if totally drained imediatedly anyway? Every iPod, iPhone and now iPad has always worked that way for me.
Give it up.
I think the two biggest factors with the iPod case were:
1) There really wasn't a universal name for these devices back then. Some were referred to as MP3 players, others as Portable Media Players, Digital Media Players, etc.
I think that's an excellent point. I think it's one of those thins most of us realize but for some reason never seem to bring up.
I use PMP as a universal, technical term for this forum but I would never use it as a general term. I'd use iPod or MP3 player. I certainly don't like to say MP3 player on this forum to refer to the PMP category here because it's less technical even though the context makes its usage clear.
Not until Apple used the term and some 9-year old snickered, and some people jumped to repeat the naughty joke, lacking other reasons to criticize the device
i recall that moment in time, yes.
sadly, the 'nine (9) year-old mentality' will persist amid online news / discussion groups regardless of company. Apple has been subject to it as well as Sony, Samsung, Microsoft, RIM, Google and dozens of others. it's the price we pay when only an email address is required to join a message board, not reason or civility.