Cisco extends deadline for Apple to respond to iPhone lawsuit

Adam Turner
Thursday, 01 February 2007 18:29

IT Industry - Market

Apple and Cisco have agreed to extend the time for Apple to respond in their dispute over the iPhone trademark.

In a joint statement, the two companies said Apple's deadline to respond to the lawsuit had been extended to "allow for discussions between the companies with the aim of reaching agreement on trademark rights and interoperability".

Cisco rebranded its existing line of Linksys Skype-compatible cordless VoIP phones as iPhones in December 2006, just weeks before Apple launched its iPhone - a combination iPod and smartphone. Cisco claims to have owned the iPhone trademark since 2000, having acquired it through the acquisition of Infogear. 

Cisco filed a suit against Apple the day after CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the new Apple iPhone at Macworld in January. Apple's iPhone phone is expected to hit stores in June.