Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) has just applied for trademarks for its Poke app. According to The Next Web, the social media giant filed three trademarks for Poke, Facebook Poke and the logo it uses for its iPhone Poke app. Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) reportedly filed for the trademarks on Dec. 21 on the day it released its Poke smartphone app.
Poke has been a feature on Facebook almost since its inception. In fact The Next Web found that it did apply for similar trademarks in 2006, although the social media giant then abandoned them last July. A quick check of the site’s terms of service shows that Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) claims that Poke is one of its registered trademarks. Technically Facebook does own the trademark on the term in Europe however.
Facebook’s Poke feature allows users to send photos, videos and text messages which self-destruct in about 10 seconds. It is a feature that’s a lot like Snapchat. Some 50 million photos are shared via Snapchat per day, and the new startup that birthed the app is in the process of raising additional capital for further development of the app.
TechCrunch reported today on Snapchat co-founder Evan Spiegel’s response to the news that Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is seeking a trademark for the Poke name. He said, simply, “Welcome, Facebook. Seriously.” And that was all he had to say about the news.
Shares of Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) have been falling almost since the markets opened today. They rebounded in afternoon trading to erase some of their decreases.
