Ask anyone in the tech industry what the iWatch is and he or she will likely explain that it's the smartwatch rumored to be in development from Apple Inc. However, the iWatch moniker has meant nothing official, until now.
Bloomberg reports the world's most valuable technology company is seeking to trademark the name "iWatch" in Japan, marking the first acknowledgement from the company of the rumored new gadget, with the exception of unconfirmed reports form Russia. Bloomberg cites two people close to the company who have said Apple has 100 product designers working on a wristwatch-like device that would perform many of the same tasks as the iPhone and iPad, hinting it will be a stand-alone device and not simply an augmentation to the iPhone and iPad like other smartwatches on the market.
Apple CEO Tim Cook has said the company won't be releasing any new devices until, at least, September. The likely candidate for the release is the iPhone 5s, not an iWatch. Apple has not had any new mobile devices come out since October. With the company just now patenting the name, it doesn't look like a smartwatch will be in Apple stores any time soon.
The company has slumped 25 percent in the past year, facing low demand for the iPhone 5 and losing ground to Samsung. With Google making headlines with its wearable tech device "The Google Glass," Sony's SmartWatch selling heavily and Foxconn debuting a new device, which augments a watch with an iPhone, the company might need to respond to the wearable tech industry in the near future.
With its potential patent of the iWatch name, it would be a solid move for the company to create a device based off a name and title people recognize. However, the patent could just be a way for the company to protect their "i" naming system from the growing smartwatch development market.
