WOOLWORTHS insists its new logo is a stylised ''W'' or a piece of fresh produce. Apple thinks it is an apple, and the California-based technology company wants to stop Australia's largest retailer from using it.

Apple has mounted a legal challenge to prevent Woolworths from using the logo, arguing it is too close to its own.

Brand battle... the logos of Woolworths, left, and Apple.

Apple will have to convince IP Australia, the Federal Government agency that governs trademarks, to knock back Woolworths' application - filed in August last year - to trademark its logo.

Apple is spooked by the fact Woolworths has gone for a blanket trademark that would allow it to slap its branding and logo on every imaginable product.