Wow! Who would have thought that a blog post rebuttal would cause this much trouble. We talk about the three app restriction with Win7 starter, the possible new Mac Mini, and the whole rebuttal….thing.
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Ok, as promised, I’m going to vent a little. For the first time in two or so years in doing this show I felt something strange after doing an episode. After Episode 79 I went to bed thinking about the Psystar vs. Apple legal argument that Rachel did such a wonderful job arguing with me about. Something had really bothered me about that conversation. Bothered me so much that I had trouble getting to sleep that night. Which is major for me since once my head hits that pillow….I’m usually out like a light.
I kept replaying the specifics of the argument over and over in my head. More specifically, the point Rachel made about the legality of Apple’s copyright. She argued that Apple’s tethering of the hardware to the software prevents PC builders to have another option to sell and therefore is anti-competitive.
This bothers me. Right down to the core.
PC builders have two options. Windows or Linux. They don’t have OSX as an option because Apple restricts it to their hardware. This has been the case since before OSX. From pre OSX, through the PowerPC, G5 and otherwise, Apple has ALWAYS, locked their products down with the software. Sure, they toyed with other manufactures in the past making clones…it almost cost them everything.
But now that Macs use basically the same guts as a PC, NOW we fall into anti-competitiveness? My GOD! What is this world coming to? Have we come so far down the rabbit hole that we have to litigate in order to compete at every turn? The problem here really isn’t the fact that Apple is anti-competitive. The real problem is that Microsoft is having this “identity crisis” and PC builders are the ones left holding the bag. And when you are backed into a corner what does any self-respecting, red-blooded American company do?….you betcha…they sue!
In order to hit the brakes on this rant before it spins out of control I would like to bring up a point about Sony. When a manufacturer like say….Yamaha, Panasonic, Pioneer, etc. wants to build a Blue Ray player they HAVE to buy the processing chip from Sony (not to mention other licensing fees). They charge these companies anywhere from $300-$500 per chip. This chip only costs Sony about $20 to build. Therefore, they have a built in cost advantage hardware AND software wise in Blue Ray players. PLUS, an artificially created pricing out of the competition. This is a generally accepted practice and yet it’s OK to sue Apple for being anti-competitive?
Apple is a unique company. And quite frankly they are far from perfect. But you know something, maybe this has more to do with the fact that companies are having a hard time competing with Apple. Maybe things may change with Windows 7. Who knows. All I know is that this idea of opening up Apple via the courts is one of the saddest things I’ve heard of in the world of tech in a long time. I can only hope that the case goes in Apple’s favor. But if it doesn’t, I think it will be a very sad day in the world of tech. A closed Apple in the long run is best for us all. More on that some other time….
The Microsoft Store? Psystar wins a round? Plus, the difference in closing applications in Windows vs. Mac.
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Here are a couple of articles we will be talking about on this weeks show…
February 8, 2009 (Computerworld) A federal judge last week ruled that Psystar Corp. can continue its countersuit against Apple Inc., giving the Mac clone maker a rare win in its seven-month-old battle with Apple.
He also hinted that if Psystar proves its allegations, others may then be free to sell computers with Mac OS X already installed.
In an order signed on Friday, U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup gave Psystar the go-ahead to amend its lawsuit against Apple. According to Alsup, Psystar may change that countersuit, which originally accused Apple of breaking antitrust laws, to instead ague that Apple has stretched copyright laws by tying the Mac operating system to its hardware.
Microsoft’s decision to limit Windows 7 Starter Edition to running only three concurrent applications could force up the price of netbooks in the UK. The company announced last week that it was launching Windows 7 Starter Edition as a low-cost option designed specifically for netbooks.
However, the company’s decision to impose a three-app limit could force many manufacturers to opt for the more expensive Home Premium.
Next Episode this Thursday…Don’t miss it!
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Ok, here we go again. Except this time we have a company that is putting forth a mac clone solution that a consumer can do themselves. Appleinsider reports:
“Leveraging an internal adapter that lets many generic PCs run Mac OS X, a company called EFi-X USA now plans to offer a solution that potentially allows customers to create their own Mac systems.
Unlike the offerings from besieged clone maker Psystar, the EFi-X USA Millennium 4 will be targeted directly at the performance crowd. It’s expected to boast a Core 2 Quad processor overclocked to at least 3.8GHz, 4GB of memory, a GeForce 8800 GTS video card and a high-speed disk combination that includes a 150GB, 10,000RPM boot drive and a 1TB, 7,200RPM secondary drive that holds the bulk of the computer’s storage. Two DVD rewriters will also be included.
The system will reportedly sell for $1,899 (plus the additional cost of a $199 EFi-X dongle) and deliver “85-90%” of the performance of a top-end Mac Pro for less than half the price, according to a company spokesman. Buyers can also potentially custom-order systems themselves.”
If this is a sign of things to come Apple is going to have a lot on their legal plate. It also makes me wonder if there are nefarious entities afoot behind this one just as it has been alleged with Psystar.
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Are there nefarious plots behind Psystar? We examine the breaking news out of the Apple vs. Psystar case.
READ MORE ABOUT THE CASE AT GROKLAW
Whoa! Did any of you see this today? I have to take a breath before I type this. *sigh*. Ok i’m ready now.
Apple is expanding the scope of their lawsuit with Mac clone maker, Psystar. In doing so, they are suspecting that there may be other corporate and/or individuals behind Psystar.
“Now free of any countersuits, Apple has grown its lawsuit against Mac clone maker Psystar to accuse it of further violations and to claim that others have contributed to its breaking copyright law.
The amended suit, unearthed by Groklaw, primarily expands Apple’s original complaint to assert that Psystar has violated the Digital Millennium Copyright Act by engineering its OpenComputer lineup to use Mac OS X despite measures intended to prevent the operating system from running on anything but Apple’s own hardware.
it also charges the Florida-based clone builder with pushing buyers to commit copyright infringement, including violating the DMCA by circumventing Apple’s restrictions in day to day use, and of violating Apple’s trademark on the term SuperDrive used to describe the DVD burners in Macs.
But the most eyebrow-raising element remains the 18th paragraph, which explicitly states that Apple believes ten unknown people or companies — each nicknamed “John Doe” — have contributed on some level to the numerous violations named in the amended suit.
“On information and belief, persons other than Psystar are involved in Psystar’s unlawful and improper activities described in this Amended Complaint,” the new section reads. “The true names or capacities, whether individual, corporate, or otherwise, of these persons are unknown to Apple. Apple will seek leave to amend this complaint to show the unknown John Doe Defendants’ true names and capacities when they are ascertained.”
Wow. I usually forgo my comments on something like this so I can express them on the podcast. But my goodness. If this is true, and if there is discovery that corporate entities are behind the start up Psystar, this has ENORMOUS consequences that will have a rippling effect on the PC/MAC scene.
Stay tuned folks, this is getting interesting.
Cal
I’m going to make this short and sweet then let you read the rest of the article for yourselves.
SUCK IT PSYSTAR!
Appleinsider reports:
“A California judge on Tuesday granted Apple’s motion to dismiss counterclaims on the part of unauthorized Mac clone maker Psystar, who charged the Mac maker with violating antitrust laws through its vigorous attempts to block third parties from selling rival Mac OS X-based computers.”
“Central to Psystar’s complaint was that Apple’s Mac OS X operating system is not reasonably interchangeable with other operating systems such as Microsoft Windows and therefore comprises its own distinct market. The clone maker alleged that Apple has engaged in various forms of anti-competitive conduct in order to “protect its valuable monopoly in the Mac OS market” and that it has also run advertising campaigns to help define the Mac OS as a product separate and distinct from other operating systems.
Apple responded to Psystar’s argument by asserting that the company’s definition of a market comprised of a single brand of a product is neither legally nor factually plausible. Judge Alsup agreed, noting that the definition of an antitrust “relevant market” is typically a factual rather than a legal inquiry, but certain legal principles govern the definition.”
From Computerworld:
From PC Pro:
