“Apple Computer has won a patent for the interface of its iTunes music software, underscoring the growing importance of the multimedia business for the company. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued Apple a patent for its media player software interface on May 4, along with several other features of the company’s high-profile products. Other parts of the iTunes software, including the ability to stream songs over a network to another copy of the program, had been the subject of earlier patents,” John Borland reports for CNET News.
“Apple has been the recipient of thousands of patents, ranging–in just in the last month alone–from the iTunes software components to the swivel arm joint supporting the latest iMac’s flat-panel screen,” Borland reports. “Early in March [Apple] applied for a patent on the interface for its popular iPod digital music player.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple’s United States Patent 6,731,312 can be viewed here. Images relating to the patent can be viewed here.