Say what you want about Candy Crush Saga, the game was release in late 2012 and it has grown to become a global phenomenon, becoming a veritable money printing machine for the guys over at developer King.

Because of the game’s success, tons of imitators have come out vying for a cut of that huge, mammoth profit that the game has been raking in annually. The folk at King were not happy about this, and since Apple is a bit lax about imitators (so long as they’re not literally infringing on copyright or trademark), they took to trademarking one of the words frequently used by imitators. That word was candy, and I wish I was joking.

Since being shockingly awarded the mark for “candy,” multiple developers have been issued cease and desist emails from Apple, one such developer being Benny Hsu of All Candy Casino Slots – Jewel Craze Connect: Big Blast Mania Land. While that title is a mouthful, it didn’t stop King from flatly denying his appeal for the title of his game, stating:

Your use of CANDY SLOTS in your app icon uses our CANDY trade mark exactly, for identical goods, which amounts to trade mark infringement and is likely to lead to consumer confusion and damage to our brand.

Those are some bold words, and it doesn’t stop here. There are lots of other developers who are coming out saying they’ve received similar threats. What does this mean for games that contain an iconic candy in them – or is King just simply attacking games that share a likeness in title alone?

What could this mean for other developers that have struck it big and are looking to protect their name? Are we going to see similar marks awarded for words like “saga,” or “legends”? As silly as it sounds, I wouldn’t rule out the possibility.