Jordan Mechner has trademarked the name Prince of Persia Prodigy for use in videogames...

Jordan Mechner, the Creator of the Prince of Persia series, has trademarked the name Prince of Persia Prodigy for use in videogames. This follows Ubisoft's announcement of a new Prince of Persia game scheduled for release in the publisher's fiscal 2008/09.

The trademark covers "Game software and electronic game programs, namely software games recorded on CD-ROM and digital video discs for computers; software games recorded on CD-ROMs, digital video discs, and cartridges for console and individual, portable gaming systems; software games that are downloadable from a remote computer site and electronic game software for mobile phones, personal digital assistants, and handheld computers."

In other words, every possible outlet that you could think of for a game. Ubisoft previously announced a new Prince of Persia game in their 2007/08 Q3 financials, which was scheduled for release during the company's fiscal 2008/09 (any time between April 1st 2008 and March 31st 2009).

However, there was no confirmation of whether or not this would be the next-gen Prince of Persia game that has been rumoured over the past couple of years. After all, the Prince could just be scheduled to appear in a game for mobile phones.

Following the fanfare of Assassin's Creed last year, the Prince of Persia 4 sniffer dogs have been held at the leash in recent times. However, this Prince of Persia Prodigy trademark is set to re-ignite the flames of next-gen Prince of Persia rumours.

Filing such a trademark certainly isn't unusual for Mechner, who created the original Prince of Persia in 1989 for the Apple II and owns the trademarks for almost everything Prince of Persia that has been released since (including the Sands of Time trilogy that was published by Ubisoft).

In recent times, Mechner has been hard at work on the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time film, for which he is credited as the creator and writer of the original screenplay. Also on the credit lists are Hollywood Uber Producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Director Mike Newell (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire; Pushing Tin; Donnie Brasco; Four Weddings and a Funeral). The film is currently in preproduction.