Getting Around Apple's Licensing Problems With The iBox
from the creative-solutions dept
The arguments have gone back and forth over the years as to whether or not Apple should license their designs to other companies to build "Mac clones". Steve Jobs has always been against the idea, and quickly killed Apple's one real experiment into the space when he came back into power there. Now, however, a guy in Minnesota is looking to sidestep Apple's licensing issues in order to produce his own "iBox" - an upgradeable, pizza-box shaped Mac computer. His plan is just to build the boxes using spare parts normally used for repairs, and then having customers buy and load their own Mac OS onto the box. There are still some questions about whether or not this is all legal, but Apple's lawyers (or, perhaps more importantly, Jobs himself) haven't come out with their opinion (and subsequent cease-and-desist letter) yet. Other lawyers, though, seem to think it's going to be a difficult path to take - since he's likely to tread very close (if not directly trample) some trademarks and patents held by other companies.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
