I admit the I was briefly caught in all the fanfare around Apple’s announcement of the iPhone last week but Apple has gone back to it’s usual ways and I have come back to my senses.
Several developers have created skins for Windows Mobile and launchers for Palm that resemble the interface on Apple’s soon to be released iPhone. Not only has Apple sent cease and desist letters to the sites hosting these files, they have sent them to blogs linking to the sites. Apple doesn’t just want you not to be able make your Windows Mobile or Treo look like an iPhone. They don’t even want you to hear that the ability to do so even exists.
Isn’t it interesting how Apple can rationalize clearly stealing a company’s trademarked of a device that they are selling but fell infringed upon if some developer makes a Treo or a Windows Mobile device look like the device they are about to come out with.
I just hope that some developer creates an iPhone theme for the BlackBerry. I will gladly link to hit here.
[Via TechCrunch]
Stealing trademarks? I am far more surprise that Apple has not, as in the Toys’r’us approach, where anything ‘r’us is the subject of a lawsuit, gone after i-anything. After all, every one of them is playing of the Apple iMac/iPod successes and the associated name recognition. That, as legal precident has shown, is a clear infringement on brand equity.
Apple has been more than tolerant of all the little guys – I’m just completely surprised that they have not gone after everyone for this long before. If Cisco persists, maybe that is where Apple should go after all the other leeches out there.
Rob: Not to be harsh, but did it ever occur to you that Apple did some research and determined that Cisco didn’t necessarily own that iPhone mark? There are some blogs out there suggesting that Cisco blew a necessary filing to maintain the mark. Trademark is a tricky area unlike copyright. Apple clearly has a copyright in the “skin” of the iPhone and they have every right to protect it. The Cisco issue is much murkier. And while I am on a rant, and since you made this into some kind of moral issue suggesting Apple is a bad actor, perhaps I should point out that it seems logical for Apple to be a little bit protective and paranoid about the look and feel of their products since (1) it is a key part of what sets them apart and (2) every good idea they have ever had (mouse, icons, 90% of the features of OSX) have been stolen by Microsoft and others. Drop the sermonizing and cut the little guy some freaking slack.
Who’s the little guy?
Did someone just refer to Apple as ‘the little guy’?
Someone get this guy a newspaper and turn it to the stock section.
I was referring to Apple and meant that they were little when compared to Cisco and Microsoft, both of whom absolutely dwarf Apple in size.
I agree with the previous posts. I am a very happy apple user, and i also really like my pearl. Yes, i’d like to see a skin like the iPhone, but i also understand why apple would want to block it. And if you put a link up, you’ll take it down pretty quickly when you realize how much it will cost you in legal fees and you’ll lose anyway. Hopefully someone will make a skin that’s close enough to look cool, but not close enough to piss off apple. As xtopher wrote, it’s apple’s look and feel of their products that helps to set them apart. Stability helps too.
I must say that on the one hand, this type of lawsuit seems silly. Also, in one sense, this simply helps promote Apple’s product.
However, I can understand Apple’s decision. When your product is one large screen, it is the look and arrangement of icons that determines its uniqueness. If Apple had designed a device with a physical layout of buttons and controls similar to this, and someone copied that, I can guarantee you that most would feel a lawsuit justified.
Consider this: if someone puts this type of skin on one of those HTC phones with the full screen and slideout keyboard, I guarantee you that some people would consider think it to be an iPhone. I bet someone could sell it on eBay that way.
So on the other hand, I do understand this action.
This is the best phone that has come on the market you would have thought with its technology it would have only stayed as a concept phone but let us all bow to Apple for making concept to reality.
more discussions about this mobile device “iPhone” you can find here:
http://www.phoneone.info/forums/showthread.php?t=40
when steve jobs demonstrated the iphone the phone rang with an official apple ring tone. i plucked the ringtone from the video converted it to mp3 and put it on my blackberry.
it’s pretty easy to do. the ringtone is here if anyone wants it
Casey,
This deserves a post all to it’s self…
“every good idea they have ever had (mouse, icons, 90% of the features of OSX) have been stolen by Microsoft and others. Drop the sermonizing…”
Pullleeeaze! Drop the sanctimonious sermonizing yourself! The mouse, icons, windows, etc that they (and you) accuse Microsoft of stealing from THEM were first stolen BY Apple, from Xerox and their STAR workstation. Those were no more Apple’s original ideas than they were Microsoft’s, and Apple’s lawsuit against Microsoft (which we all know they LOST) was ridiculous and egotistical BS from the start. “Its ok for us to steal it from Xerox, but if YOU “steal” it from US after that, we’re going to sue you!” Riiiiiggggghhhhhtttttt……….
DallasFlier,
I couldn’t agree with you more.
xtopher,
It absolutely occured to me. Apple’s lawyers are NOT a bunch of idots. It would make no sense for Apple to clearly violate Cisco’s trademark if they didn’t think that there was a loophole they could exploit.
Hmmm… I’d say their GUI looks a hell of a lot like the original PalmOS GUI with a black background. So much for originality.
So, Apple doesn’t steal others’ IP, huh? What about the menu structure for the iPod? They stole that from Creative.