Uh Oh, Apple: Swiss Firm Has Trademark on 'iPAD'

A Swiss-based chip maker has trademarked the name for its own proprietary technology, and a spokesman says this morning the company, STMicroelectronics, is now looking into the whole situation.

When Apple first announced its iPhone in 2007, it ran squarely into the crosshairs of networking giant Cisco because Cisco owned the rights to the name, "iPhone."

At first, Cisco executives suggested the company wouldn't budge on the ownership of the name. Apple called Cisco's claim "silly." Eventually, they worked it out and everybody lived happily ever after.

Until yesterday, that is, when Apple unveiled its latest creation, the iPad, which is Apple's entry into the multimedia tablet arena.

First, iPad was the subject of a wild roasting all over the Internet over the choice of name (which tens of thousands of people mocked on services like Twitter as sounding like a women's hygiene product.) Now, it seems, Apple has picked another name that someone has gotten to first.

According to filings on record with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, STMicroelectronics owns a trademark on the name "IPAD." (In this case, IPAD is an abbreviation for "Integrated Passive and Active Devices technology.") You can read more about STMicroelectronics' IPAD here.

A spokesman for STMicroelectronics, asked about it this morning, would say only, "we are looking into the situation." An Apple spokesman did not immediately return a call seeking comment.