HTC Files Trademark for Scribe Tablet

From eWeek: Mobile phone manufacturer HTC joins the growing list of companies planning to roll out tablet devices in the wake of the Apple iPad, if a trademark filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is any indication. The company filed the trademark for the “Scribe” handheld electronic device on Dec. 26. “This will provide an alternative to the iPad,” Will Stofega, program director at consulting firm IDC, told Bloomberg News. “This will compete on pricing, and could be as good or better.”

Apple’s iPad was one of the biggest technology debuts of the year, proving to be an instant success with consumers and reinvigorating the long dormant tablet PC market. Rivals such as Samsung, HP and Palm have hurried to craft their own tablet computers, though Apple is likely to hold a comfortable lead on market share over the next couple of years. Google Android-powered devices (HTC is the world’s largest producer of Android smartphones) are likely to provide the headiest challenge to Apple’s tablet dominance.

According to a survey of 2,288 participants from Fuze Box and Harris Interactive, 20 percent of Americans will own a tablet computer by 2014. Some 78 percent of respondents said they planned to use their tablets to surf the Web. Three-quarters of people said they would use their machines for e-mail. Electronic reading of books and newspapers, (53 percent), social networking (50 percent), consuming TV via Netflix, Hulu and other apps (43 percent) were also popular draws. Tablet use bodes well for enterprises as well, with 37 percent of respondents pledging to use their machines for business concerns.

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