Tiger Direct, an online computer retailer, today filed a lawsuit against Apple Computer in the United States District Court for the District of Florida. The suit alleges Apple Computer engaged in trademark infringement and unfair trade practices in connection with its recent marketing campaign for the latest version of its MAC OS X operating system, which Apple has named “Tiger.”

Tiger Direct has asked for a temporary restraining order and injunction against Apple Computer. The lawsuit focuses on the release of Apple’s OS X 10.4 operating system. Apple has been running a large multi-media marketing campaign, promoting OS X 10.4 “Tiger”.

According to Tiger Direct, Apple’s promotions use the term “Tiger” in relationship to “products from manufacturers and product categories which are basically the same as the offerings by Tiger Direct.”

A preliminary injunction hearing has been scheduled for Tuesday, May 3, 2005.