Psystar Says Apple Mac OS X is Not Copyrighted
Mac clone maker Psystar latest justification of selling unauthorized Mac systems by claiming Apple does not hold any copyright for its Mac OS X operating system. Psystar also claims that Apple’s Leopard OS, has a stealth code running in the background, which restricts only hardware sold by Apple. The next trial is in April 2009.
Are there bigger corporations backing up Psystar? Apple think so and in fact they said there are 10 corporations behind this case.
Microsoft Guilty Of XBox 360 Disc Scratching
Microsoft has been plagued with Red Ring of Death (RROD) previously, and now it is official that Microsoft knew about the Xbox 360’s disc-scratching issue. Microsoft knew about this problem prior to launch and did not fix it due to the extra 50 cents per console.
Next time you know why your 360 game would not play, just check the disc surface for scratches.
Source: Lawsuit: Microsoft knew about 360 disc scratching issue
Psystar Throws Copyright Abuse At Steve Job’s Face
In the latest effort for Psystar to be an Apple clone, they have ditched the antitrust lawsuit but instead attacked Apple with copyright abuse. Clone wannabe Psystar says Apple prevent competition via the End User License Agreement (EULA) and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). We do not see this going to dent Apple at all.
Read the full counter claim from Psystar following the link provided.
Source: Psystar vs Apple (PDF)
Apple Sued Over iPhone Safari
Apple is sued over the iPhone’s Safari web browser by EMG Technology, LLC accusing Apple of infringing their patent (No. 7,441,196 ) on how “the way the iPhone navigates the Internet.” The title of the patent is Apparatus and method of manipulating a region on a wireless device screen for viewing, zooming and scrolling internet content.
Source: Patent 7,441,196
Apple And Psystar Agrees To Talk It Out Privately
Aple and Psystar has agreed to Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) where they will hold talks behind close doors.
Previously Apple has sued Psystar for making a clone of the Apple Macintosh which run modified versions of the Mac OS X Leopard. Then Psystar icountersued Apple for violating two federal antitrust laws, the Sherman Antitrust Act and the Clayton Antitrust Act. Psystar says that its OpenComputer product is shipped with a fully licensed copy of Mac OS X using open source technology.
Apple said, “by misappropriating Apple’s proprietary software and intellectual property for its own use, Psystar’s actions harm consumers by selling to them a poor product that is advertised and promoted in a manner that falsely and unfairly implies an affiliation with Apple.”
Mac Cloner Psystar Countersues Apple
Recently Apple has sued Psystar for making a clone of the Apple Macintosh which run modified versions of the Mac OS X Leopard. Now Psystar is countersues Apple for violating two federal antitrust laws, the Sherman Antitrust Act and the Clayton Antitrust Act. Psystar says that its OpenComputer product is shipped with a fully licensed copy of Mac OS X using open source technology.
Apple said, “by misappropriating Apple’s proprietary software and intellectual property for its own use, Psystar’s actions harm consumers by selling to them a poor product that is advertised and promoted in a manner that falsely and unfairly implies an affiliation with Apple.”
Apple is also asking for a recall of Psystar machines and also asking the court to recover unspecified damages.
Apple Sued Over iPhone 3G Reception Problems
Jessica Alena Smith from Alabama has filed a suit against Apple for falsely advertising the new iPhone 3G being “twice as fast for half the price”. Jessica found out that her iPhone has slower connection speed than what was advertised by Apple. There were already a fair amount of complaints and Apple has recently released a firmware upgrade to 2.0.2 which apparently did not really fix the problem. More trouble is coming over to Apple for this 3G device.
Source: Apple Sued Over iPhone 3G Problems
YouTube Ordered To Release User Data
A New York Federal judge ordered Google’s YouTube to release user data due to copyright infringement lawsuit by Viacom. This $1 billion lawsuit has granted Viacom’s request YouTube to release its 12 terabyte user database which will reveal the viewing habits of viewers. This data will contain user id, viewing times, ip address and the identification of the video.
Privacy activists from the Electronic Frontier Foundation said the ruling disregarded the 1988 Video Privacy Protection Act passed by Congress to protect people’s video-viewing habits from being disclosed.
Google senior litigation counsel Catherine Lacavera said, We are disappointed the court granted Viacom’s overreaching demand for viewing history,” she said. “We will ask Viacom to respect users’ privacy and allow us to anonymize the logs before producing them under the court’s order.
Source: Court order on YouTube user data fans privacy fears
Apple Settles With Burst For $10 Million
Apple ended two years of litigation with Burst.com by paying $10 million to settle a patent-infringement lawsuit over technology that stores audio and video files.
Burst has agreed not to sue Apple for any future infringement of current or pending patents that have not been shared between the two companies.
Previously Burst sue Microsoft and received $60 Million.
