Report: Apple may have paid over $1M in iAd trademark settlement

This is interesting -- a consultant for Apple on the recent "iAd" trademark settlement accidentally disclosed some information about how much the payout was, and apparently it wasn't cheap. Consor says that it helped Innovate Media (the firm which has used the iAd trademark since 2006) pick up "a 7-figure settlement from Apple Computer [sic] in a trademark infringement case." That's probably over a million dollars, which actually sounds low, considering how solid a grip Innovate Media actually had on the mark. But when Apple comes calling, so does the big Apple wallet.

What's interesting about this is that we've seen Apple "ignore" trademarks a few times before, only to pay out with what we'd presume is a large settlement. But we've never actually heard any numbers on this, so Consor's little release shows that Apple has been writing some pretty substantial checks each time the name issue comes around.

Then again, with $51 billion in the bank Apple can afford to not be so picky when it comes to the trademarks on names they don't own.