Prepear, which has been embroiled in a trademark controversy with Apple for nearly six months, said on Tuesday it had resolved the issue by changing the leaf shape of its logo.
Company co-founder and COO Russ Monson in a statement to iPhone in Canada They said they had “amicably resolved the trade issue with Apple.” Monson said the company will “make a small change to our brand in the coming weeks,” adding that Prepear is “pleased” with the terms of the settlement.
The cure, it seems, is a somewhat clothed sign. Prepear has changed the leaf shape in its pear logo to make it different from the Apple image look. The developer will use the revised symbol in its logo and profile of the app.
Apple first raised complaints about the app’s logo when it formally filed a trademark claim from food design firm Super Healthy Kids in August last year. The sign is a simple view of a pear with a single leaf in the shape of an almond. Apple argued that the design was too similar to its “famous Apple Logo” and “created a similar commercial look.”
Prepear later allegedly engaged Apple in “bullying” tactics that cost the company “thousands of dollars” and led to the placement of at least one employee. Monson appealed to the public with a petition to “save the pear” and “end Apple’s aggressive campaign with fruit-branded businesses.”
“Apple has been pitting small businesses with fruit-related brands by starting an expensive lawsuit even when those brands don’t look like the Apple logo, or when they don’t one line of business with Apple at all, “read the petition.