It’s been a while since Apple used its ‘Think Different‘ slogan. Launched with a one-minute TV ad in 1997 when Apple was trying to persuade people to buy a Macintosh instead of an IBM PC, it hasn’t been used since 2002.
But Patently Apple notes that the company has expanded the European trademark filing to cover seven new product classes.
Apple’s International Classes for ‘Think Different’ have greatly expanded from one class to eight. The classes now cover Apple Watch (Horological and chronometric instruments; watches), Apple Pay (financial services); Apple Pencil, iPad, (computers, stylus), games, business management, subscription services, telecommunications, broadcasting, music, television, educational services and Siri (maintenance of proprietary computer software in the field of natural language, speech, speaker, language, voice recognition, and voice-print recognition) …
With Apple kit as mainstream as it is today, it’s hard to see how the company could make use of the slogan these days, so it’s probably just a defensive move to prevent anyone else doing so – it’s an important part of Apple’s history.
The TV ad that aired was narrated by Richard Dreyfuss, Steve Jobs having narrated an earlier version before deciding that it was “a horrible idea.” You can watch the Steve Jobs version below.
Apple has paid homage to the speech in various ways over the years, most recently in Swift functions.
