Apple Granted Design Patent on CoverFlow
Media player programs that bear a "substantially similar" appearance are subject to change
The United States Patent and Trade Office awarded Apple with a range of patents including their patents for the MacBook Air superdrive and video-encoding system used in iChat, all of which pretty standard. But the patent to take note in the open source community is a design patent for CoverFlow, the visual way users parse through music and video on the iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad and in iTunes.
A design patent differs from a utility patent because it covers the appearance of an intellectual property, not how the property itself functions. In other words, any program that looks "substantially similar" to CoverFlow is eligible for legal action.
Programs and devices affected by the patent include Cover Flow, a similarly named (note the space) open source Flash script, MediaFlow, an add-on to Songbird and a variety of media players on mobile devices, such as the Motorola Droid, Nokia N900, Nokia Symbian^3, should Apple decide said interfaces are too similar.
CoverFlow was developed by Steel Skies and bought by Apple in 2006. As of this writing, Apple has not pursued legal action.
Comments
comments powered by DisqusSubscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Halcyon Creates Anti-Ransomware Protection for Linux
As more Linux systems are targeted by ransomware, Halcyon is stepping up its protection.
-
Valve and Arch Linux Announce Collaboration
Valve and Arch have come together for two projects that will have a serious impact on the Linux distribution.
-
Hacker Successfully Runs Linux on a CPU from the Early ‘70s
From the office of "Look what I can do," Dmitry Grinberg was able to get Linux running on a processor that was created in 1971.
-
OSI and LPI Form Strategic Alliance
With a goal of strengthening Linux and open source communities, this new alliance aims to nurture the growth of more highly skilled professionals.
-
Fedora 41 Beta Available with Some Interesting Additions
If you're a Fedora fan, you'll be excited to hear the beta version of the latest release is now available for testing and includes plenty of updates.
-
AlmaLinux Unveils New Hardware Certification Process
The AlmaLinux Hardware Certification Program run by the Certification Special Interest Group (SIG) aims to ensure seamless compatibility between AlmaLinux and a wide range of hardware configurations.
-
Wind River Introduces eLxr Pro Linux Solution
eLxr Pro offers an end-to-end Linux solution backed by expert commercial support.
-
Juno Tab 3 Launches with Ubuntu 24.04
Anyone looking for a full-blown Linux tablet need look no further. Juno has released the Tab 3.
-
New KDE Slimbook Plasma Available for Preorder
Powered by an AMD Ryzen CPU, the latest KDE Slimbook laptop is powerful enough for local AI tasks.
-
Rhino Linux Announces Latest "Quick Update"
If you prefer your Linux distribution to be of the rolling type, Rhino Linux delivers a beautiful and reliable experience.
Re:
Under the design patent pretty much any interface that appears substantially similar to CoverFlow can be subject to a patent infringement claim, but filing a claim is up to Apple's discretion.
The other Apple OS applications