Apple Fails in Bid Against 'Wapples' Trademark in S'pore

No reasonable likelihood of confusion between both trademarks, Ipos rules

- Toh Yong Chuan

US technology giant Apple has failed in its bid to block a South Korean security systems company from registering "Wapples" as a trademark in Singapore.

This comes after the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (Ipos) ruled on Dec 18, 2024, that Apple and "Wapples" are conceptually dissimilar and there was no reasonable likelihood of confusion between both trademarks.

On Dec 3, 2021, South Korean information technology (IT) security company Penta Security filed an application in Singapore to register the trademark "Wapples".

The company was incorporated in South Korea in 1997 and provides IT, internet and data security products and services.

Products under the "Wapples" trademark were developed to protect web applications and application programming interfaces, or APIs, from unauthorized access and cyber attacks.

These products were first released in South Korea in 2005 and subsequently distributed in Singapore in 2010.

Apple objected to Penta Security's application.

Penta Security's application and Apple's objection came before Ipos, which had to decide on the merits of Apple's objection.

"When a common word in the English language is incorporated into an invented word, what is the impact on public perception? The parties in this case take starkly opposing positions on the question," said principal assistant registrar See Tho Sok Yee in her written decision on the case in December 2024.