Swatch competed with Apple for the slogan Think Different. Apple lost

A well-known Swiss watchmaker won a lawsuit in the European Court of Justice over the use of the slogan Think Different. It appeared in Apple advertising from 1997 to 2002. Then Apple really had the right to this phrase.

But in 2016, Swatch came up with a similar phrase – Tick Different, which led to a lawsuit that Apple lost. Among the materials of the case, the decision of the Board of Appeal established that the slogan has a “rather weak distinctive character”, and the advertising evidence provided by the company for more than 10 years.

The Court notes that, contrary to what Apple claims, the Board of Appeal’s conclusion as to the distinctiveness of the contested marks is not contradicted by a body of evidence aimed at proving that they have been put to genuine use.

So Apple no longer owns the Think Different brand in Europe, which is still remembered by fans of the brand.