Hey guys, it’s Greg with Apple Explained and today we’re going to explore why Apple
uses the ‘i’ prefix for so many of their products.
This topic was the first place winner of last weeks voting poll and if you didn’t get
to vote, make sure you’re subscribed, that way the voting polls will show up right in
your mobile activity feed and you can let me know which video you’d like to see next.
So one of the most iconic characteristics of Apple’s products is the lower case “i”
included in their names, from the iMac to the iPhone.
And the company has used this letter so often for the past twenty years that we almost take
it for granted, forgetting why it was there to begin with.
But many people who haven’t followed Apple closely wonder why a lowercase ‘i’ is
used in their products at all.
Does it have a special significance or meaning?
Does it stand for something?
Well, the answer to this question isn’t as simple as it seems.
Some Apple fans may say the “i” stands for internet.
But this really only applied to the iMac, which was the first time Apple used the lowercase
‘i’ in a product.
So let’s travel back to 1998 and explore the iMacs story first.
So when Apple was trying to figure out what most consumers wanted in a desktop computer,
the vast majority of them just needed a way to get on the internet.
So Jobs decided to engineer and market their new consumer desktop around that one feature.
And he even wanted the products name to reflect its internet capabilities.
That’s where the idea for the lowercase ‘i’ came from, where the ‘i’ stood
for internet.
But Jobs assigned other meanings to the letter during its introductory keynote in 1998.
He said the ‘i’ not only stood for internet, but also instruct, individual, inform and
inspire.
There were even some who insisted the “i” stood for interim because Steve Jobs was the
Interim CEO of Apple at the time.
But that claim wasn’t based on anything other than speculation.
So the purpose behind the first use of the lowercase ‘i’ was to represent the word
internet, and Apple actually tried to copyright the ‘i’ prefix to prevent other companies
from using it for their products, but it wasn’t significant enough to be patented.
Although the different names of Apple’s products that include the lowercase ‘i’
can be trademarked, and certainly are.
But it appears as if the letter is slowly being phased out since it hasn’t been used
for some of Apple’s more recent products.
The Apple Watch, for example, was rumored to be named the iWatch until it was finally
revealed.
And the Apple TV was actually introduced on stage as iTV, but a British telecom company
had already patented the name so Apple was forced to change the product to Apple TV before
its release.
So many of you may not’ve been too familiar with the original iMac, but you probably are
familiar with the ‘i’ products that followed.
Because the next big release was the iPod in 2001.
Now you may be thinking, “why would they include the lowercase ‘i’ in its name
if it didn’t even feature internet capabilities?”
Well the story behind the iPods name is quite different from the iMac.
And the man responsible was a freelance copyright writer named Vinnie Chieco.
After learning about Apple’s digital hub strategy, he thought of the movie 2001: A
Space Odyssey, and the phrase “Open the pod bay door, Hal!” referring to the EVA
Pods of the Discovery One spaceship.
Chieco’s vision was the correlation between the spaceship and its smaller independent
pods, a kind’ve metaphor for the personal computer hub and media player pod.
So that explains the pod, but where did the ‘i’ come from?
And the best answer we have today is that the lowercase ‘i’ was used as a simple
brand identifier, it didn’t actually stand for anything.
Because keep in mind, iBook, iMovie, and iTunes had all been released prior to the iPod.
So the ‘i’ prefix had already become an established Apple brand association by that
time.
But there was a problem when they discovered that the name “iPod” was trademarked and
already being used for internet kiosks.
The iPod kiosks had been demoed in New Jersey in March 1998, and began to be used commercially
in 2000, but then the name was ultimately discontinued in 2001, which meant the trademark
was free to be used by another company.
Apple was quick to claim it, and the name was officially registered by the U.S. Patent
and Trademark Office in November 2003 and was then assigned to Apple Computer, Inc.
in 2005.
Now the next big release to feature Apple’s ‘i’ branding was the iPhone in 2007.
And by this point, you might assume Apple’s new products were essentially naming themselves.
It would appear fairly obvious that a mobile phone from Apple would be called iPhone, but
that wasn’t the case at all.
Because Apple considered many other names for their smartphone.
A few of them being Telepod, Mobi, and Tripod.
Now Telepod was considered because it sounded like a futuristic twist on the word “telephone.”
And as for Mobi, it was simply a shortened version of the word “mobile.”
And finally Tripod was actually the most popular consideration for the company’s smartphone.
And there’s actually a pretty good reason for this.
You see, Apple introduced the iPhone as three different products: an iPod, a phone, and
an internet communicator.
So the name Tripod emphasized these three features of the device that separated it from
its competition.
But eventually the name iPhone won out, and I think we can all agree Apple made the right
decision.
The next big product came in 2010, when the highly anticipated iPad was finally announced.
Now back in 2009, rumors of a tablet device from Apple had been circulating for years,
and many wondered what the company would name it.
There had been a few sources suggesting Apple was considering two names in particular for
the tablet.
The first was iTablet, and the second was iSlate.
And this may be strange since the name “iPad” wasn’t even considered until later in the
device’s development.
And although it hasn’t been confirmed, there was speculation that the final release name,
iPad, was named after, and paid homage to a device called the “PADD” that was used
in Star Trek.
Although the PADD was a fictional device, it looked very similar to the iPad that was
eventually developed by Apple.
And if this theory turned out to be true, it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise,
since Steve Jobs was a big Star Trek fan.
Now as I briefly mentioned earlier in the video, Apple didn’t limit their use the
‘i’ prefix to hardware.
Because a number of applications and even an operating system was named using the letter.
Including iOS, iTunes, iMovie, iLife, iWork, iCloud, iBooks, iMessage, and more.
So with such a strong brand association tied to the letter ‘i’, it isn’t surprising
that Apple has tried their best to patent it.
But this just isn’t possible.
So the second best thing is for Apple to trademark their existing product names, like iPhone
and iPad, so at least those names are protected.
Now you may be wondering why Apple tried so hard to copyright one lowercase letter, but
their reasoning behind it can be seen all around us.
Because there are other electronics companies using product names with the iconic lowercase
“i,” like iSkin and iSoft.
And in a 2010 court case in Australia, Apple tried suing over the use of what they considered
to be their unique brand identifier.
But the tribunal overseeing the case rejected Apple's claim that consumers might be confused
into thinking that they were buying an Apple product.
And this lawsuit kind’ve backfired for Apple because it essentially reassured companies
that they couldn’t be sued for using the lowercase ‘i’, therefore encouraging its
adoption.
So it became clear to Apple’s legal team that it was impossible to stop other companies
from using the “i” prefix.
And rather than continuing to fight a losing battle, it seems that the company decided
to head in a different direction when it comes to naming their new products.
Because other companies have recognized the premium brand association with the ‘i’
prefix, and have started incorporating the letter into their own product, service, or
company names.
And one thing Apple despises is being associated with low quality products and services.
And although some consumers may initially associate an ‘i’ product with Apple, I
think most are sensible enough to differentiate between the two.
Now if this assumption is true, and Apple never plans on introducing a new ‘i’ product
again, then what’ll happen to their existing ‘i’ product lines?
Because the iMac, iPhone, and iPad certainly aren’t going anyway anytime soon.
So will Apple change those products names to something like Apple Mac, Apple Phone,
and Apple Pad?
It may sound pretty strange, but a name change similar to this already happened back in 2001
when Apple changed the name of their iBook to MacBook instead.
Jobs explained that the change reflected Apple’s desire to include the word ‘Mac’ in the
names of all of their computers.
So is the next development to include the word ‘Apple’ in all of the company’s
products?
It’s hard to say now, since it is still very early in the process, but I wouldn’t
be shocked to see Apple continue to move in this direction for the naming of their future
products.
So who would have thought something as simple as the letter “i” could not only become
such an icon in the technological world but also stir up such controversy?
And it’s actually proven to be quite timeless and flexible.
Since Apple has used it for everything from their mobile operating system to their desktop
computers, online services, mobile devices, and applications.
Its story is as long and eventful as any Apple product and its influence has reached beyond
the world of tech to other industries around the globe.
This one letter has become deeply rooted in the hearts of casual Apple users and diehard
Apple fans alike.
I never imagined a day where I’d be talking about it’s demise, since even today it makes
up a huge part of Apple’s brand identity.
But judging by the products Apple has released in the last few years, it would appear that
the ‘i’ is on its way out, and only time will tell how long the existing ‘i’ product
names stick around.
So that is the history of the ‘i’, and if you want to vote for the next video topic,
don’t forget to subscribe.
Thanks for watching, and I’ll see you next time.