“Major League Baseball is crying foul over an Apple iPhone App called Baseball that it says infringes on MLB trademarks,” Tom Spring reports for PC World.
“At issue is Baseball’s use of MLB team logos inside the application. The free Baseball application for iPhones debuted last Friday as one of hundreds of applications available through iTunes App Store. Baseball, published by Bulbous Ventures, is a reference utility packed with baseball statistics dating back to the 1888 Detroit Wolverines all the way up to San Francisco Giant Barry Bonds’ 2007 battering average of .276,” Spring reports.
“On Monday Michigan’s Mark Knopper, owner and sole employee of Bulbous Ventures, received an email from MLB Advanced Media demanding that he remove baseball team logos from his program along with a nearly imperceptible MLB logo used on the application program shortcut,” Spring reports.
“The avid Detroit Tiger fan says he will comply, but admits disappointment,” Spring reports. “Knopper, a self-employed Mac programmer, created the Baseball iPhone App for pure amusement and thought it would ‘cool to just give the program away for free to other baseball fans’ like him, he says… Knopper isn’t taking any legal chances. ‘Major League Baseball could squash me like a bug. The logos will be removed.'”
More in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Sean” for the heads up.]
bless….
The app is free- MLB should make better use of its resources by returning integrity to the game. got Steroids?
MLB issues a recall of Apple iPhones.
Steve Jobs craps his skivvies.
Psystar chuckles.
Would be nice if MLB would have bought “Baseball” from Mr. Knopper and gave it away free to it’s fans… Yea right, that makes to much sense.
Unfortunately, even if this fellow is not a threat, MLB has no choice but to defend its intellectual property (IP). Otherwise, a court will not uphold it the next time, when there is a real threat. Lame? Yes. Our legal system? Also, yes. (BTW, I have no affiliation with MLB.)
He did not have the expressed written consent of Major League Baseball!
He said “Bulbous”….
That should help increase its downloads by a boat load.
I laugh at this kind of stupid thinking in the US. Here any company would be grateful for the free advertising.
Jake, what you say is, unfortunately, all too true. The question isn’t about is this a threat to them or will anyone be confused by this, it’s about the IP. Which is why the solution from app store makes so much more sense. a) good vibes all around and b) minimal cost. Those “good vibes” would include “Good Will”, which is actually a line item in the valuation of many companies. Offer a couple thousand dollars to someone who was making nothing off the program and the coder benefits both by the couple thousand and by the name recognition HE gets in the process.
MLB should hire the guy and promote the service. People are already tired of these overpaid players. Making more money than they are worth. MLB and players image needs an overhaul.
It is sad when big corporations or organizations like MLB or AT&T;make something exclusive to the point where some will walk away. Makes you wonder how many fans they would really have if they opened or unlocked what they choose to say is mine, mine, mine. I wonder how long it will take Apple Inc. to see this.
That stupid sport has never had any morals, from the gambling cover-ups of the 1800s to the killing of the Montreal Expos.
> He did not have the expressed written consent of Major League Baseball!
Funny…!
But actually, maybe the guy should just try asking for it.
Well said. Jake is absolutely right. You might not agree with how our legal system works with respect to Intellectual Property law, but in this case MLB had no choice. If they were not to defend their trademarks and logo now, some scumbag could use this as a case for stealing the marks, then using the Baseball app case to defend their right to steal them outright. And it’s likely that they would win.
Take the Tiffany vs. eBay case that was decided this week for example. Tiffany sued eBay in US courts to try to stop counterfeit silverware from being auctioned and sold on eBay. In its decision, the US court sympathized with Tiffany, knowing that the company is suffering significant damage from counterfeiting. But in case law, eBay is merely a place of exchange, and is not obligated under law to intercede on behalf of Tiffany. This was not the case in France, where the French courts found in favor of Tiffany. (The French courts traditionally defend large copyright holders, particularly native companies.) But in the US, the court sided with eBay, in part because of the decision would have ramifications on future cases.
It’s why Apple has no choice but to sue Psystar. Even if Apple does not win on the shrink-wrap license issue, it’s likely the courts will find in favor of Apple on trademark infringement.
When a company or organization invests as much as Apple or MLB has in branding and marketing its trademark in the US, it is essential that they vigorously defend their name, logo and trademarks. Otherwise you have a situation like that which you find in China, where counterfeiting is flagrant. More than a few companies have been destroyed by counterfeiting. And if you think, “hey, what’s the big deal?”, you would be wrong. It costs companies billions in losses to scumbag counterfeiters.
While I hate to see a little guy get stepped on, MLB sadly had no choice here. Any judge will tell you that ignorance is no defense under US laws. Just like you could not tell a judge that you didn’t see the stop sign that you ran, nor can the small programmer say that he did not know that he was violating the copyright and trademarks of MLB. Sad, but true. I have a hunch that the programmer will settle quickly and quietly, re-issue his app again without the MLB images, and live to play ball another day.
And that, children, is today’s lesson on IP law. Don’t forget – there will be a quiz on this on Monday. Have a nice weekend.
F*&K;the MLB, and F*&K;all pro sports who take them selves to seriously. It’s a game, it’s suppose to be fun. WORK IT OUT.
They do the same thing to Little League Organizations and makers of their uniforms. Any uniform maker (local shops) that use Major League Logo’s on uniforms have to “buy” the license to use it. Yes it sucks and that is why we have gone away from using MLB logo’s.
Take off the logo’s and everything will be fine. Just use the names and create something with their colors and not their logo.
MLB doesn’t get it, they are trying to squeeze every dollar they can out of the fans. Soon there will be no fans.
Come on MLB, this man is not profiting from the logos on the applications, why not call him and bring him more support, he is doing something really good for the fans. Intelectual Property? My grandmother. Intelectual Stupidity, there is not money on the App… Wake up and give us something useful. Got it MLB?
What’s an App Store?
drive fans to soccer?! I lost all interest in MLB after the players strike. Now this, it’s no wonder they can’t fill the stands.
Yet another reason to turn my back to “Pro” sports and “Pro” athletes.
I had enough of these spoiled rich cry babies.
@CandTsmac
“F*&K;the MLB, and F*&K;all pro sports who take them selves to seriously. It’s a game, it’s suppose to be fun. WORK IT OUT.”
“to seriously” should be “too seriously”, gall dern it
Will Apple be held as an accessory to crime? First, stock back dating, now pissing off MLB! Oh, when will the insanity cease?
How utterly idiotic!!! Major league baseball is really benefitting from the very existence of this app. All they had to do was grant the app maker the rights to use the logos. All that crap about “if we let one person get away with it, then everybody…” is just pure nonsense.
The real problem is that big companies only see the Dollar sign, they sign not money in this little application that at the same time compete directly with its MBL AT BAT app…..MLB has the right to protect is brand, but why not license their logo and put a headline that says: MLB is not affiliated with this Application. That’s all.