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Apple Sues Over iGasm Ads
funkeymonkeyman writes "Apple is less than pleased with an interesting new peripheral for the iPod which promises to 'take your appreciation of music to a whole new level.' Legal action has been taken against Ann Summers, the manufacturers of the new device, specifically for the similarity of the iGasm advertisements to the iconic iPod silhouette ads. The CEO of the adult retail chain replied to the threat cheerily, 'Perhaps I can send them an iGasm to put a smile back on their faces.'"
Headline should read:
Apple's usual litigation-trigger-happy attitude has netted an incalculable amount of free publicity to Anne Summers.
I can't really see how Apple can claim some sort of copyright over silhouettes. I mean - the original iPod adds seemed very.... reminiscent of the James Bond opening credits sequences from the 70s.
Perhaps Apple is jealous that the Anne Summers' logo also contains an Apple.
There are shills on slashdot. Apparently, I'm one of them.
What is the worst thing that can happen?
Um, a lifetime of reoccuring horrid flasbacks like one's own personal Clockwork Orange.
Table-ized A.I.
Again the Streisand effect but with an other twist: while every lawyer by now knows about this phenomenon, they take it into account but still chose legal action is taken to prevent other people to repeat this. What they do not realize yet is that advertisers or product managers will in future even more try to use names and pictures close to successful other pictures in order to use the free publicity from a lawsuit.
You can't patent the letter "i" or any word that starts with "i".
There is nothing wrong with what this chick is doing.
Its only available in adult shops... This is just corporate bullying.
postmodern buzzword alert: "male gaze."
It doesn't seem like this is a male hegemony issue, although after three years of LCS courses I know all too well how easy it is to use feminist theory to analyze everything. I honestly don't think the issue here is the presentation of females as sexually independent of men, it's that product x is being marketed using a knock-off of Apple's Style(TM). I'd imagine they'd still be going after the company if they made the iVag (a male sex toy.)
Apple is upset because of the ADS, not because of the name or the product.
She's using the colored background + black silhouettes style of their iPod ads.
I respond to your sigs
Icepicks, man, icepicks. Now if you'll excuse me I have to track one down myself.
Help poke pirates in the eyepatch, arr.
The ad is a parody, but the iGasm is an actual product (unless it's a hoax?). Parody is a defence for copyright infringement. This would be about trademark and patents. Since they're actually selling goods which are obviously meant to suggest an iPod style, it probably does infringe.
Yes it is. If she is taking Apple's "sillhouette ads" and copying them to advertise her "device", it is copyright infringement, pure and simple
No it's not. She's not "copying" them in the digital sense, which would be an infringement, but imitating. You can't copyright a style of advertisement. Considering how ads blatantly steal (or are "inspired by") other ads all the time, this is obviously accepted practice.
Which link is NSFW? There's no nudity or bad language on the iGasm page.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
This isn't Fark. Either man up and tell your boss about something funny you saw so that he hears about it first from you, or take some responsibility for yourself and don't click links in a story about a sex toy.
Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
You must be new here.
Sex. Drugs, and Unix.
Hey, it could be worse. He could've said Barbara Bush. Or Margaret Thatcher.
Truth, Justice. Or the American Way.