McIlvaine Law Firm » iPhone Copyright dispute over ‘iBeer’ App

iPhone Copyright dispute over ‘iBeer’ App

Apple has had its fair share of trademark disputes over its claim to the letter ‘i’. But now, two App developers are embroiled in a copyright dispute over a pair of software applications developed for the iphone.

The first developer, Hottrix, developed a software program called ‘iBeer’, which basically simulates having a pint of beer on your phone. Then, Coors (the beer maker) developed another program called ‘iPint’. This program was essentially the same thing, but was given away for free, no doubt as a marketing gimmick to promote their beer. Hottrix has filed a lawsuit claiming copyright infringement.

A copyright is not a patent. It does not prevent others from developing something original upon the same idea. Whether or not this is an infringement will depend not on the names of the programs, or on whether the idea was copied, but rather on the similarity in the way in which this idea for a software program is presented. Sadly, I use a real phone (not a toy like an iPhone) and so I cannot compare the similarities of expression in the two programs at this time. But you can read the original article here.

Published by: Spencer on October 14th, 2008 | Filed under Ecommerce, Copyrights



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