08.05.09
Apple Still Abuses Linux-based Phones, Formal Complaint Filed
Summary: Apple bites Palm in order to guard its territory rather than compete fairly
SOME months ago we wrote about Apple's use of patents to intimidate and harm Palm's endeavours with WebOS, which uses Linux. Weeks ago Apple took it a step futher and broke iTunes compatibility to injure Palm's business.
Apple is doing it again and Palm has had enough. Justifiably enough (based on existing evidence), it’s filing a complaint. This is covered in many places, including:
The Register: Palm slams Apple, hoodwinks iTunes
Palm has filed a complaint with an industry group that monitors USB standards, claiming that Apple is “hampering competition” by locking the Palm Pre out of iTunes. The same complaint also reveals details of how the Pre tricks iTunes into thinking it’s an iPod.
The New York Times: Rivalry Between Apple and Palm Intensifies
Apple wants its iPhone to be the only cellphone to link effortlessly to its iTunes software, but Palm is putting up a fight.
The Inquirer: Palm complains about Apple
Palm synchs with Itunes by getting the perfect rainbow-hued software to recognise the phone as an Apple music player, allowing it to transfer files between the phone and a personal computer.
Palm said that this is okay because Apple is restricting connections via USB, which it says is a blatant disregard for the terms of the standard. For its part, Apple might try to claim that what Palm is doing is also a breach of standards compliance.
A couple of days ago we wrote about Apple hiding deficiencies of its products by gagging and early in the day we mentioned Apple in the context of "evangelism", so the following new report may also be of interest: Macbook cracks threaten to upset Apple cart [via]
Apple is refusing to formally acknowledge a widespread design flaw in its Macbook products that could develop into a major PR disaster and spark a recall.
The fault occurs in the range of Macbook laptops with plastic cases that have been on the market for several years and are still being offered for sale by Apple.
This post is not intended to bash Apple; rather, it shows how Apple bullies a company that ships products that are based on Linux. Apple is harassing GNU/Linux in all sorts of other ways, which makes it increasingly difficult to give it the benefit of the doubt. █
