“Creative Technology Ltd. on Monday filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission against Apple Computer Inc., charging the maker of the market-leading iPod media player of infringing on Creative’s patents for some of its own music-playing devices,” Rex Crum reports for MarketWatch. “Creative said that it wants the ITC to investigate whether Apple violated the Singapore-based patents for the former company’s Zen brand-name device, and is asking the organization to force Apple to stop “engaging in sales, marketing, importation or sale after importation into the United States” of what Creative called infringing iPod and iPod nano products.”
“Creative also announced that it filed suit against Apple in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California for an injunction against, and undisclosed damages from Apple,” Crum reports. “Apple has the top spot in the media-player market, with more than 50 million devices sold since the iPod’s introduction in late 2001. NPD Techworld estimates that Apple has about 75% of the U.S. market for MP3 players, with all other competitors in the low single-digit range.”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Bobby” for the heads up.]
Okay, Derivative, er, “Creative,” we knew you secured a patent. Big deal. That was the easy part. Now, let’s see how enforceable your patent really is before the inevitable end comes to your self-declared, one-sided “war.” Apple should play some serious hardball with Creative and maybe, when all is said and done, it’ll help discourage the granting of dubious, overly-broad patents.
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