The judge presiding over Apple's trademark infringement case against
Amazon's recently launched Android Appstore says the iPhone maker will "probably" fail in its efforts to rename the Android store.
U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton said Apple has had trouble showing "real evidence of actual confusion" in the marketplace over Apple's iOS App Store and Amazon's Android Appstore, as
reported by Bloomberg BusinessWeek.
"I'm troubled by the showing that you've made so far, but that's where you're likely not to prevail at this early juncture," Hamilton said, adding that she would review court documents before issuing her final decision on Apple's motion.
In the lawsuit,
first filed in March, Apple argued it has spent substantial sums promoting its App Store service, and that the brand's value would be irreparably harmed by being associated with Amazon's store.
Amazon
responded to the suit by arguing that the "app store" term has become generic and legally unprotectable through broader usage by sources including Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs.
Microsoft used a similar argument in
contesting Apple's "App Store" trademark in a filing earlier this year.
