iPhone battle back to the negotiating table

Apple and Cisco Systems are suspending their
court battle over the iPhone to return to the negotiations table.

Although Cisco's lawsuit against Apple remains pending, the two companies have agreed to extend the time Apple has to respond so that the parties can discuss trademark rights and interoperability, the companies said late onWednesday.

 The aim, they said, is to reach an agreement over the matter.

Cisco, which makes routers and switches to link networks and power the internet, has owned the trademark on the name "iPhone" since 2000 and began shipping its own line of iPhone-branded internet-enabled phones in late 2006.