Apple's Logo Lunacy: 5 Previous Trademark Tiffs

05.10.2009
Well, Apple's at it again. The company that never fails to has stirred up a fresh debate with its .

Apple, in case you've yet to hear, is over a new logo the supermarket chain has cooked up. The logo shows a "W" stylized into an abstract apple-like shape, leading Apple to contend the look is too similar to its own apple-shaped symbol.

This isn't the first time Apple's gotten into a fight over its company's beloved image -- far from it. Here are five other trademark tiffs Jobs' team has found itself involved in over the years.

1. Apple vs. The Beatles

The Cupertino crew and the Fab Four fought for decades over the rights to the apple logo and name. The quarrel , when The Beatles' company, Apple Corps, sued Apple for trademark infringement. Apple ended the argument by paying $80,000 and agreeing never to enter the music business -- a promise that, needless to say, didn't last long.

A second settlement followed in 1991, when Macs started including MIDI software. That time, Apple paid a reported $26.5 million in a settlement that gave it the rights to use the apple logo for computer- and software-related products. Of course, once iTunes came around, things got dicey again. A third settlement further defined how both companies could use the name and image.