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Psystar Wins a Round Against Apple
Daengbo writes "'A federal judge last week ruled that Psystar Corp. can continue its countersuit against Apple Inc., giving the Mac clone maker a rare win in its seven-month-old battle with Apple.
He also hinted that if Psystar proves its allegations, others may then be free to sell computers with Mac OS X already installed.'
Apple is currently suing Psystar over its sale of Mac clones."
I wonder if that means we can install things like HP-UX on non-HP hardware?
Blizzard's win against Glider allowed Blizzard to dictate what you can and can't do on your own machine if you use their software.
The same should apply to Apple. You license OS X, and you agree to only run it on Macs.
(Not that I agree with the decision, but that's how I see it)
They already want to sell their OS: if they didn't, it wouldn't be in stores. The fact that they think they can dictate what gets done with it is pure, unmitigated bullshit, and hopefully it gets knocked down in court soon.
"16MB (fuck off, MiB fascists)" - The Mighty Buzzard
I think you mean, "others may be free to buy a mac to get the OS X license to put on a cheaper computer, which they won't do as Apple kills off retail sales of OS X"
So if they do win, sure you can migrate your OS across platforms. But you won't see other vendors shipping it.
Some might be rabid but others hold them to a high standard, if you actually sit in a mac forum long enough you'll notice the huge amounts of whining and dissatisfaction with Apple. These are over little details as well because they expect more from Apple and are quite knowledgeable and know what they want. Don't generalise.
Jonathanjk.com
It's very very easy to compensate for this. MS figured it out years ago. You want to give your existing customers preferential pricing on a new OS, but still gouge the new users?
UPGRADE PRICING.
Suddenly every existing OS release was an 'upgrade license', and there are two packages at retail for 10.6. 149$ gets you Snow Leopard Upgrade, which will install on any branded Mac without issue, just like existing versions have. You now have a new 499.99$ Unsupported Full Install package sitting next to it. Apple gets their money, Hackintosh users get somewhat validated, Apple still doesn't have to take their phone calls, and everyone is either happier or status quo pro ante.
The preceding comment is my own, and in no way construes an opinon of the Emperor of Mankind.
If Psystar want's to compete, let them compete. Apple competes by creating products, Psystar is simply riding their coat tails. The government forcing a company to operate in areas they deem unprofitable is not fair competition in the marketplace.
exactly. meddling in the market makes it unfair not more fair. Apple is only a 10% player in the computer market so their bussiness model is not in restraint of trade for computers.
Apple should form a "discount buyers club". To belong to the club you have to buy an apple computer. Then you get 90% discounts on the operating system updates priced at $1000 retail.
Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
So, all the $$$$$ Apple put into R&D counts for nothing? It took over 5 years for Apple to develop OS X (not counting NextStep), and more time for them to enhance it.
And after all that effort, they should be forced to essentially give it away for $130 and sacrifice their hardware business?
What's "pure, unmitigated bullshit", is the mentality that some people should be force to essentially give away the fruits of their labours.
This space left intentionally blank.
The other possibility is that Apple might stop selling shrink-wrapped copies of OS X. Instead you get a copy when you buy a machine and that makes you eligible for upgrades. So every copy of the OS would be tied to a machine, in terms of sales, if not via hardware key.
Then PsyStar would have to pirate the OS and that would definitively put them in the wrong.
And that way everybody loses.
There go my mod points, but you raise an interesting point. The Glider case decided that
a) launching the software in an unapproved manner makes the copying from HD to memory an unauthorized copy in violation of the EULA and
b) selling a product that requires the end user to break the EULA of another product to work is tortious interference Apple may actually have a case here, simply because of some WoW bot writer's inept legal defense...
"And after all that effort, they should be forced to essentially give it away for $130 and sacrifice their hardware business?"
Who's forcing a price on them?
They can charge what they like, surely?
It's the restraint of what is done with it after a sale that is at issue here. If that means that the current $130 is subsidised by hardware sales, then maybe they'll have to look at charging less for hardware and more for new OS versions? Business models have to adjust from time to time, you know. Especially when they are based on artifices like restraint of post-purchase usage which may not be legally enforceable.
The Psystar assholes are trying to profit off of someone elses work, that is all there is to it.
And what exactly is wrong with that? That's what we call capitalism. If you sell Item A, and I sell Item B that works with Item A, then I'm trying to profit off of your work. Or rather, I'm exploiting a market opportunity created by your work. Psystar selling hardware that interacts with data sold by Apple is no different than Apple selling hardware that interacts with data sold by RIAA members.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
Here's the difference. You can buy OS X and install it on any machine you want. Apple won't stop you; however, don't expect Apple to support it as it runs on non-Apple hardware. Now the moment you create a business to start selling it, you become a re-seller. As a re-seller, Apple can dictate what you can and cannot do.
The crux of Apple's argument: Psystar is a re-seller. As a re-seller, their contract would forbid them to do what they are doing. If they've never agreed to a re-seller license (which I doubt they did), then they're not allowed to re-sell OS X as they are doing. Also Apple alleges to install OS X on generic hardware, Psystar would have had to modify OS X. Apple did not give permission to Psystar to modify their code and re-sell it. If Psytar were just to sell OS X unopened in the box with instructions on how to install on generic hardware, they technically would be fine, but Psystar is actually installing OS X which is not okay. The second part of Apple's argument is that these machines do not receive updates from Apple as they fail some sort of verification. Psystar has been distributing updates by taking the Apple updates and modifying them. Again, Psystar does not have permission to modify and re-distribute Apple's code.
Well, there's spam egg sausage and spam, that's not got much spam in it.
The Psystar assholes are trying to profit off of someone elses work, that is all there is to it.
The value of your gratuitous advice for me not to go into business or law has to be measured against this gem. I believe the system you are ranting against is called capitalism. Products create markets, which can lead to other products that you did not intend. If your sensibilities are so offended, one wonders if the following equally offend your taste (staying close to this subject) :
1. Apple's profiting off BSD kernel (what is your favorite pejorative for Steve Jobs, given your love of Psystar above ?).
2. The entire aftermarket slew of non-Apple products that exist for iPod ?
Or is it that your sensibilities are affected only if rules of capitalism work against Apple instead of for it ?
Actually, they do have a monopoly. If you buy an Mac you have to buy parts from Apple; ford mustang - I can go to an after-markets store to buy their product which was not made in a ford factory. If you want OS-X, where are you legally allowed to get that...yea...
They may not have the market-share of Microsoft, but they have a monopoly. Just like MS doesn't want people's fingers in their OS, Apple doesn't want people's fingers in their hardware. So if you want to bash MS for monopoly, then you better buy an extra hammer for Apple.
I do not support "The Man". I also do not support your irrational stupidity
I'm sorry, but in this instance, it very much is personal computers that run OS X. The whole point of all this is because Apple want to be the only company that supplies computers with OS X preinstalled. Let me run that by you one more time. The only company that supplies computers with OS X preinstalled. If that isn't the definition of a monopoly, please do tell me what is.
The problem with your "definition" is that "computers with OS X preinstalled" is not a market.
Determining what is or is not a market can be a bit difficult, but the following can help: There are many things I would like to buy. Typically, if I buy something in one market, I still want the things from other markets, but I have less desire to buy things in the same market. I might be looking at LCD TVs and Plasma TVs. If I buy one of them, I suddenly don't have any desire for the other anymore; I conclude that LCD TVs and Plasma TVs are in the same market. But TVs and DVD players are in different markets; after buying the TV, I still want the DVD player.
Now lets at the "computers with OS X preinstalled": Someone might go to two computer shops, looking at a computer with OS X preinstalled and a computer with Windows preinstalled. After buying one of these computers, that person is suddenly much much less interested in the other computer. Conclusion: Same market. Therefore: No monopoly.