Cisco Systems is suing Apple to prevent it from using the name iPhone for the new smart phone Apple introduced Tuesday at the Macworld Conference & Expo in San Francisco.Cisco filed a lawsuit in Federal District Court for Northern California seeking an injunction against Apple using the name. Linksys iPhone CIT300 The name iPhone is a registered trademark of Linksys, a division of Cisco. Linksys picked up the iPhone name when it bought a company called Infogear Technology in 2000. Cisco’s iPhones are telephone handsets designed for use on a voice-over-IP (VoIP) network.The iPhone has proven to be the most talked-about product at this year’s Macworld, and its positive reception has sent Apple’s (AAPL) stock surging over the past two days. The company’s stock closed at US$97 Wednesday, up nearly 5 percent for the day. Apple and Cisco have been in negotiations for about two years over Apple’s desire to license the iPhone trademark, said Cisco spokesman John Noh. When Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone Tuesday at Macworld, Cisco had not yet received a signed trademark licensing agreement from Apple, even though the two companies had been negotiating terms as recently as Monday night. Apple iPhone “Because they have been negotiating with us on licensing the trademark all this time, Apple is acknowledging that we own the name,” said Noh. “Cisco entered into negotiations with Apple in good faith after Apple repeatedly asked permission to use Cisco’s iPhone name,” said Mark Chandler, senior vice president and general counsel for Cisco. “Today’s iPhone is not tomorrow’s iPhone. The potential for convergence of the home phone, cell phone, work phone and PC is limitless, which is why it is so important for us to protect our brand,” Chandler said.-Robert Mullins, IDG News Service (San Francisco Bureau)Related Links: Cisco’s Linksys—Not Apple—Launches iPhone VoIP Devices Apple, Cingular Partner on iPhoneCheck out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage. Related content brandpost Sponsored by AWS in collaboration with IBM How digital twin technology is changing complex industrial processes forever As the use cases for digital twins proliferate, it is becoming clear that data-driven enterprises with a track record of innovation stand the best chance of success. By Laura McEwan Dec 05, 2023 4 mins Digital Transformation brandpost Sponsored by AWS in collaboration with IBM Why modernising applications needs to be a ‘must’ for businesses seeking growth Around one-third of enterprises are spending heavily on application modernisation and aiming for cloud native status. The implications for corporate culture, structure and priorities will be profound. By Laura McEwan Dec 05, 2023 5 mins Digital Transformation opinion 11 ways to reduce your IT costs now Reorienting IT’s budget toward future opportunities is a big reason why CIOs should review their IT portfolios with an eye toward curbing unnecessary spending and realizing maximum value from every IT investment. By Stephanie Overby Dec 05, 2023 11 mins Budget Cloud Management IT Governance news analysis SAP faces breakdown in trust over innovation plans The company’s plan to offer future innovations in S/4HANA only to subscribers of its Rise with SAP offering is alienating customers, user conference hears. By Peter Sayer Dec 05, 2023 6 mins SAP Cloud Management Innovation Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe