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Psystar Crushed In Court

Posted by kdawson on from the no-surprises dept.

We've been following the case of Mac cloner Psystar for some time now. Apple was just handed a summary judgement over Psystar, and as usual Groklaw has the scoop. Here is the order (PDF), though PJ supplies it in text form at the link above. "Psystar just got what's coming to them in the California case. ... It's a total massacre. Psystar's first-sale defense went down in flames. Apple's motion for summary judgment on copyright infringement and DMCA violation is granted. Apple prevailed also on its motion to seal. Psystar's motion for summary judgment on trademark infringement and trade dress is denied. So is its illusory motion for copyright misuse. ... So that means damages ahead for Psystar on the copyright issues just decided on summary judgment, at a minimum. The court asked for briefs on that subject. In short, Psystar is toast." Reader UnknowingFool adds, "There are still issues to be decided but they are only Apple's allegations: breach of contract, induced breach of contract, trademark infringement, trademark dilution; trade dress infringement, state unfair competition, and common law unfair competition. Even if Psystar wins all of them, it is unlikely to help them very much."

8 of 640 comments (clear)

  1. Too Bad by Rix · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    OS X is a decent operating system, but few people can be satisfied by a single hardware vendor. Might as well write off Apple as a player now, as it's unlikely they'll ever release the death grip and let the world play with OS X.

    1. Re:Too Bad by bug1 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

      It seems to have worked quite well so far.

      For who, apple or consumers ?

      How about judging a company by the contribution it makes to society rather its profits (or are you a shareholder) ?

    2. Re:Too Bad by jcr · · Score: 1, Flamebait

      Might as well write off Apple as a player now

      Had a look at their five-year chart? Or better yet, their stock performance since 1997?

      If you want to write them off, I sure hope you're not managing your own stock portfolio.

      -jcr

      --
      The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  2. Re:Psystar winning would be terrible for Microsoft by binarylarry · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Oh really? Why then is Microsoft trying to clone everything apple is doing?

    Zune, Microsoft Store, the new "iPhone killer" windows mobile, etc, etc

    Apple could be a very serious threat to Microsoft if they changed their attitude towards businesses.

    --
    Mod me down, my New Earth Global Warmingist friends!
  3. I agree, but it's not that simple by Rix · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    A particular Apple machine might suit my purposes at one time, but that doesn't imply that they'll always be able to meet my needs. I wouldn't lash myself to the mast of Apple any more than I would Dell or Acer or any other hardware vendor. So long as OS X is tied to a single vendor, it's absolutely irrelevant to any reasonable person.

  4. Re:The only thing lamer than this verdict by javacowboy · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Please explain how Psystar is justified in creating an altered derivative work of Apple's copyrighted operating system.

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    This space left intentionally blank.
  5. Re:The only thing lamer than this verdict by linuxrocks123 · · Score: 1, Flamebait

    I agree; PJ is annoying. Someone needs show her this and make her shit bricks: https://phonemasters.de/en/PearC-Starter

    PearC is doing EXACTLY what Psystar is doing, but in Germany, so Apple can't do anything to stop them! Kind of awesome :D

    ---linuxrocks123

    --
    vi ~/.emacs # I'm probably going to Hell for this.
  6. Re:The only thing lamer than this verdict by celeb8 · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    If Ford sold the only cars with steering wheels and automatic transmissions, then I might agree that your analogy is apt.