Bonum Certa Men Certa

Apple's (and MPEG-LA's) Fight Against Diversity

"[A] patent pool is being assembled to go after Theora and other "open source" codecs now." --Steve Jobs

Skyscrapes



Summary: An update on Apple's aggression with software patents and an update on the MPEG troll which Apple uses for protectionism

THE legal aggression from Apple led to a provisional ban, but it also led to a wave of calls to boycott Apple (the #boycottApple tag is trending). People are truly fed up and Samsung is appealing the ban. To quote Muktware: "Samsung has filed an appeal to overturn the preliminary Galaxy Nexus ban granted to Apple last week. US District Court judge Lucy Koh granted Apple ban on two Samsung devices within a week the old Galaxy Tab 10.1 and Galaxy Nexus.

"Apple is unable to compete based on merit, so it wants to shoot the competition.""Apple has sued almost every Android company calling for bans on their devices fearing competition. Unfortunately the flawed patent system, where USPTO keeps granting patents, and the legal system enables compaines like Apple to stifle competition and discourage innovation."

There are competition issues at hand here. Apple is unable to compete based on merit, so it wants to shoot the competition.

Several years ago we saw NERO calling for investigation of the MPEG cartel, of which Apple too is a member (Steve Jobs used it to FUD several free multimedia formats). In a press release that appeared in some places, there was a mention of settlement. To quote:

MPEG LA, LLC and Nero AG have recently settled the litigation between them, which was pending in the Los Angeles Superior Court. MPEG LA and Nero are pleased that this has been resolved to their mutual satisfaction by agreement of the parties and that Nero will continue as a Licensee in good standing under MPEG LA’s MPEG-2 Patent Portfolio License, MPEG-4 Visual Patent Portfolio License, AVC/H.264 Patent Portfolio License and VC-1 Patent Portfolio License.


Here is more:

Nearly two years ago, German multimedia software company Nero filed an antitrust case against patent licensing body MPEG-LA. This organization basically licenses patent pools, covering essential patents required for use of the MPEG-2, MPEG-4 Visual (Part 2), IEEE 1394, VC-1, ATSC and AVC/H.264 standards.

That means pretty much any device or piece of software even remotely related to video needs a license from MPEG LA, which is an entirely private organization – for the record. Licensors include companies like Apple, Microsoft, LG, Dolby, Siemens, Sony, France Télécom, Samsung and others.

This morning, Nero and MPEG LA announced that they’ve settled the litigation between them, which was pending in the Los Angeles Superior Court, “to their mutual satisfaction”.


Apple continued collecting infamous software patents that got coverage from pro-Apple sites. Apple is not the exception, but Apple is the one which uses patents aggressively, unlike for example Nintendo and its patents that it gets while fighting against trolls only (they attack Nintendo quite frequently). Remember that we urged people to boycott Apple because while it generates high (but undeserved) profits it is attacking smaller companies, unprovoked, and tries to ban their products. It doesn't get any more arrogant than this.

Comments

Recent Techrights' Posts

Sounds Like IBM is Preparing for Mass Layoffs/Redundancies in Red Hat, Albeit in "PIP" (Performance Improvement Plan) or "Relocation" Clothing
This isn't the "old" IBM; they're applying pressure by confusion and humiliation
Gemini Links 17/04/2025: Role of Language and Back to Mutt for E-mail
Links for the day
 
Links 19/04/2025: "Infantilization at Big Tech" and LLM Slop Abused in Defiance of Workplace Rules/Policies
Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/04/2025: Palm Addiction and Real Experts
Links for the day
Egypt is Controlled by Google, Not Microsoft
Moving from Microsoft to Google is not the answer
Microsofters Say They Cannot Find a Job (That They Want) Because of Techrights, But Techrights Merely Reported on Their Behaviour
Quit pointing the finger at people who are recipients of abuse or merely mention the abuse
Free Software and Standards - Not Marketing Blitz - Needed Amid Growing Severity of Dependency on Hostile Suppliers (or Another Country's Sovereignty)
ZenDiS can be described as the "Center for Digital Sovereignty of Public Administration"
When It Comes to the Web, Google is Evil and It Destroys the Web's Integrity With LLM Slop
Even academia, which is meant to keep standards high, is being lured into LLM slop
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, April 18, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, April 18, 2025
Links 18/04/2025: "Fentanylware (TikTok) Exodus Continues", Chinese Weapons Allegedly in Russia Already
Links for the day
Gemini Links 18/04/2025: Price of Games and State of Tinylog
Links for the day
"Sayonara" (さよなら), Microsoft
Windows had fallen below iOS in some countries
Links 18/04/2025: Layoffs at Microsoft Infosys and Qt Becoming Increasingly Proprietary (Plus Slop)
Links for the day
Google News is Dying
treating MElon's algorithmic/biased site as a source of verified news
Microsoft's Attack Dogs Have Failed. Now What?
It would be utterly foolish to assume that Microsoft has any intention of changing
All Your "Github Projects" Will be Gone One Day (Just Like Skype)
If you have code you wish to share and keep, then start learning how to do so on your own
To Understand Who's Truly Controlling You Follow the Trail of Censorship (or Self-Censorship)
Do not let media steal and steer the narrative; CoCs are not about "social justice", they're about corporate domination
Fedora Already Lost Its Soul Under IBM
Fedora used to be very strict compared to many other distros and it had attracted very bright volunteers
Microsoft is Still Attacking GNU/Linux and the Net
Microsoft bribed the government using money that did not even exist
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, April 17, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, April 17, 2025
Gemini Links 18/04/2025: Pinephone Pro and Linux is too Easy
Links for the day
Links 17/04/2025: Calling Whistleblowers at Microsoft, Slop Doing More Harm Everywhere
Links for the day
Links 17/04/2025: Russian Bot Farms Infect TikTok (Which US Government and SCOTUS Decided to Block January 19), US Hardware Stocks Crash Due to Tariffs
Links for the day
Gemini Links 17/04/2025: Sticking to Free Software, Smolnet, and Counting the Reals
Links for the day
Open Source Initiative (OSI) Privacy Fiasco in Detail: In Conclusion and Enforcement Action Proceeds Against OSI at the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA)
There's too much to cover in one single part
When You Fail to Filter Your Clients You End Up SLAPPing Reporters on Behalf of Bad People From Microsoft in Another Continent
“American Psycho”
Links 17/04/2025: LayoffBot and Tesla Cheats Buyers
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, April 16, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, April 16, 2025