A US judge yesterday rejected part of Apple’s lawsuit against Amazon.com’s use of the term App Store, ruling Apple cannot bring a false advertising claim against the online retailer.
US District Judge Phyllis Hamilton in Oakland, Calif., granted Amazon’s motion for partial summary judgment, which only challenged Apple’s false advertising allegations. Apple leveled other claims against Amazon, including trademark infringement.
An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment, and an Amazon rep could not be reached immediately.
Apple accused Amazon of misusing what it calls its App Store to solicit developers for a mobile software download service. However, Amazon said its so-called Appstore has become so generic that its use could not constitute false advertising.
In her ruling, Hamilton wrote that the mere use of “Appstore” by Amazon cannot be taken as a representation that its service is the same as Apple’s.