Man and Machine makes water-resistant computer peripherals for hospitals and labs where moisture is unavoidable. The company also claims that its devices help keep infections at bay and the Mighty Mouse itself is dishwasher safe for easy cleaning.
This whole legal battle goes back ages so we'll refresh your memory a bit. Apple licensed the trademark from CBS, which owns trademarks associated with the cartoon character. However Man and Machine claimed that it owned the trademark when it came to mice and so, a suit was filed. CBS and Man and Machine apparently filed for a trademark relating to mice around the same time. Engadget reports that both applications were put on hold while Man and Machine sued the pants off of CBS and Apple and that once it was all sorted out, CBS abandoned its application in June of this year, leaving Man and Machine free to to resume its own registration.
The lesser-known company announced yesterday that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office had awarded Man and Machine the trademark, meaning Apple will either have to drop the name or try and come to some kind of agreement with Man and Machine. Apple is said to be coming up with new mice and keyboards in the near future so all in all, it's probably pretty nice timing for a change-the-name-of-your-product-or-face-our-trademark-laden-wrath lawsuit.
