Apple wins FUNAPPLE trademark opposition
Summary
The USPTO Trademark Trial and Appeal Board sustained Apple Inc.'s opposition against the FUNAPPLE trademark application filed by Ruiyu Xu. The TTAB decision prevents registration of the FUNAPPLE mark based on likelihood of confusion. This is a routine inter partes trademark proceeding with no industry-wide regulatory implications beyond establishing a precedent for similarity assessments.
What changed
The TTAB sustained Opposition No. 91303274, ruling in favor of Apple Inc. against applicant Ruiyu Xu. The Board determined that the FUNAPPLE mark (U.S. Application Serial No. 91303274) is likely to cause confusion with Apple's existing trademark rights. The opposition was filed on November 21, 2025, and the decision was issued on April 3, 2026.
For trademark practitioners and applicants, this decision reinforces the USPTO's continued scrutiny of marks that incorporate well-known brand elements. While non-parties face no direct obligations, counsel should review this decision when assessing likelihood of confusion for new applications, particularly those targeting technology sector marks that could evoke established consumer brands.
What to do next
- Review TTAB decision TTAB91303274 for likelihood of confusion analysis methodology
- Ensure new trademark applications avoid similarity to established brands in the technology sector
- Update trademark clearance search protocols to account for phonetic and conceptual similarity
Source document (simplified)
Opposition: FUNAPPLE
Opposition TTAB91303274-20260403 Kind: OPP Apr 03, 2026
Abstract
BD DECISION: OPP SUSTAINED
Plaintiff: Apple Inc.
Defendant: Ruiyu Xu
Mark at issue: FUNAPPLE
Filing Date
2025-11-21
Related changes
Source
Classification
Who this affects
Taxonomy
Browse Categories
Get Courts & Legal alerts
Weekly digest. AI-summarized, no noise.
Free. Unsubscribe anytime.
Get alerts for this source
We'll email you when ChangeBridge: TTAB Proceedings publishes new changes.