Is Apple's Vision Pro branding already in trouble?

Apple's Vision Pro has been afforded plenty of column inches over the last week, with the $3,499 AR headset (potentially) set to make waves in the new world of 'spatial computing'. But Apple might already be facing one minor hiccup – is the name Vision Pro already taken?

In China, it turns out smartphone manufacturer Huawei owns the "Vision Pro" trademark, and has done since 2019. Which could mean Apple is forced to rebrand the device overseas – or pay a hefty amount to release the trademark. (In the market for new gear? Check out the best iPhone 14 deals available now.)

As spotted by Patently Apple, Huawei currently has "exclusive rights of trademark use from November 28, 2021, to November 27, 2031" for the name Vision Pro. And Huawei already sells a few products under the Vision name, including its Vision S Smart TV.

While it seems unlikely that Apple would have announced the Vision Pro name without knowing that the name belonged to Huawei in China, it could prove costly. As MacRumors points out, Apple has paid a Chinese company for a product name before, shelling out a whopping $60M to buy the Chinese rights to the iPad name from Proview Technology in 2012.

Still, as one of the world's richest companies, Apple can probably afford to take the financial hit of securing the name. Time will tell with Vision Pro will indeed change the game and finally drive VR into the mainstream – in the meantime, we have mixed feelings about the thing (although the internet seems to unanimously find it pretty hilarious).