Linked by Eugenia Loli-Queru on Wed 11th Jun 2003 21:39 UTC
Apple Computer is being sued by The Open Group, the San Francisco company that claims ownership of the Unix trademark, for using the term Unix in conjunction with its Mac OS X operating system without a license. Apple has countersued, asking a judge to declare that the trademark is invalid, because the term Unix has become generic. This legal battle, though separate from SCO's recent claim that Linux uses copyrighted Unix source code, adds further fire to the debate over the custody of Unix--the 30 plus-year old OS originally developed by AT&T.
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Torrey, it's not subjective at all.
It's a question of whether or not the word is a generic term within the vocabulary of the product.
For example, Kleenex was so popular that it became a genric term to refer to facial tissues. However, this doesn't invalidate the validity of its mark.
However, a term like UNIX is generic and has value and need as a term within the computing vocabulary. People cannot be prevented from saying that "XYX Operating System is built with a base of UNIX technology." This is a meaningful use of a generic term that can't be denied to competitors.
Mmmmm, I don't know... Don't get why people never understand this... Don't think I'll ever come upon a sure fire explanation that works...