Full FeedPsystar not just defending, they’re fighting back!
Psystar, the company that wouldn’t die, hasn’t just responded to Apple’s cease and desist with a defense. Oh, no it hasn’t. Psystar announced today that it will be suing Apple, citing that old, battered, anti-trust card. Bets on who will win?
Granted, this case is a little less weighted in favor of Apple simply because it has some merit, however little “some” is. Psystar is banking on the idea that the End User License Agreement isn’t legally enforceable. That would work if Psystar were simply installing retail Leopard onto generic PCs, but it isn’t. OS X requires a small amount of hacking to be able to run on a generic PC, and so, Psystar isn’t just violating the EULA (which states that OS X may only be installed on Apple branded computers), it’s also modifying Apple’s software without permission, Apple alleges. However, Psystar fires back that they are not modifying any proprietary code, they are solely modifying open source OS X components.
It will be greatly interesting to see how this case plays out, as it would be a devastating blow to Apple if Psystar were to win. Psystar’s lawyers have fought Apple before and won.
Via [Electronista]
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Were Apple to lose this case, the loses would not just be monetary. A lose would open the floodgates to the other little start-up tech companies that have followed Psystar’s example and attempted to sell inexpensive Mac clones. Not many have been even slightly successful, but a loss would be more ammo for them to get a chunk of Apple’s market share.
on August 27, 2008 at 03:49 PM - LINKOh God forbid that Apple actually allow someone to use their precious OS X. Its not like Psystar is stealing it and giving it away. If anything, allowing the OS to be used on non-apple made computers is a good thing. Apple has somehow brainwashed the people that buy their computers into believing that if they pay for a price gouged Apple PC that they are some how sanctified. Its only a matter of time before Apple will wake up and smell the coffee. Either make your software available to all, or stop complaining when someone doesn’t feel like getting raped when they buy a computer. Apple has already angered much of the professional community by buying software companies and then discontinuing their PC software (or did you forget about the people who paid $1000 for Logic only to have no tech support or upgrade options after Apple bought the company?) This is typical Steve Jobs, greedy and elitist. I will hand it to Apple’s marketing department though, they have managed to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes rather easily by appealing to gullible college kids and aging hippies.
on December 17, 2008 at 06:08 PM - LINKNo one complains when someone doesn’t want to buy a Mac. The complainers are always the Windows fanboys or simply anti-Mac fanboys who can’t afford a Mac or have decided to hold a grudge against a company for some inane reason.
What Psystar is doing is infringing upon copyright by modifying Apple’s Leopard. The case would be a lot less black and white if Psystar were simply installing Leopard with absolutely no modification, but it is being modified in order to work on the custom PCs that Psystar makes. Psystar is the one ripping us off here, by the way. The machines they sell are nothing more than overpriced, unbranded custom PCs which can be had for a lot cheaper. You really want to run Mac OS X on a non-Mac, there’s no need to go through them.
on December 17, 2008 at 07:47 PM - LINKCompletely true, Adam. Earlier this year, my PC died (not quite, but it was unable to run any Windows version), so I had to change it. It was an old AMD64 of 2 ghz and 1Gb ram. I must have payed close to $300 for it 3 years ago and, before I threw it to the garbage, I tried using my copy of Tiger that came with my Dad’s G5. The system itself could not be installed as it was, but there were TONS of tweaks to make it work going around the web. A simple Google search would do. What Psystar charges it’s bogus and illegal, since they ARE changing stuff they aren’t aloud to.
on December 17, 2008 at 08:06 PM - LINKIf you made something that took you a lot of work, and along comes someone that changes it to do whatever he wants with it, you’d be pissed.