Apple v Apple back in court again

Apple Computer and Apple Corps are this week heading into the courtroom in an ongoing trademark dispute.

It's the third time the iPod-maker will face off against the company which owns the rights to the Beatles' songs - this time to determine whether the iTunes Music Store violates a previous settlement from 1991.

Apple Corps, owned by the former Beatles and their heirs, is seeking multimillion pound damages and is asking that Apple Computer stop using its name and logo for selling music online.

In 1991, Apple Computer paid $26m in a deal which carved up the areas where each company could use the Apple brand. The agreement forbade Apple from distributing music on physical media such as CDs or cassette tapes but it's not clear whether this extends to the distribution of digital music over the internet. Apple's online iTunes Music Store has sold more than a billion songs.

This settlement followed a deal in 1981 which stipulated Apple Computer must stay out of the music business.

The court will now be asked to analyse the 1991 settlement and determine how it applies to the new paradigm of online music distribution, which has developed in recent years.

The trial is set to open tomorrow at London's High Court and will be presided over by Justice Edward Mann, a self-confessed iPod owner and a judge known for his savvy with both technology and music issues.