Here's an interesting one. Siliconera has dug up what it claims to be a Japanese trademark for the term "Zii," and contrary to what you may expect, the application wasn't filed by Creative. We double checked the database, and sure enough, the paperwork went through on October 30th -- which almost certainly means that this was more than just some day-late attempt to fend off the next-generation of KIRF Wii consoles. There's obviously no way to tell what the Big N has in mind here, nor if this will cause any kind of friction between it and Creative, but we'll certainly be keeping an ear to the ground for more. Who knows -- maybe the Zii is that HD Wii we've all been clamoring for since November of 2006. Or maybe it's nothing at all.

Update: We've done a bit more digging, and it looks as if this here filing may simply be a renewal of a 2006 trademark request. Moreover, we've found Nintendo trademarks in Japan for Cii, Bii, Oii and Yii, so it seems the company may just be on some sort of rampage in order to cover its tracks in one form or another.

Nintendo trademarks 'Zii' over in Japan, Creative is like 'zaywha?' originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 15 Dec 2009 08:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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