The companies haven't disclosed how much Apple is paying
Apple has decided to pay up for an allegedly stolen clock design in its latest iOS 6 mobile operating system.
IOS 6, which was released last month only days ahead of the iPhone 5, featured a new clock design for the iPad that seemed pretty basic. Just a white face with black, rectangular notches representing the numbers, black hour/minute hands and a red seconds hand. No big deal, right?
Wrong. The iOS 6 clock was nearly identical to a clock design developed by a railway company in Switzerland called Swiss Federal Railways (SBB). SBB said its company created that clock design back in 1944.
SBB's clock [left] and Apple's iOS 6 clock design (right)
[Image Source: IBN Live]
When SBB became aware of the stolen design, it immediately contacted Apple in hopes of some sort of licensing agreement.
"We are proud that this icon of clock design is being used by a globally successful company," said Reto Kormann, SBB spokesperson. "We've approached Apple and told them that the rights for this clock belong to us."
Now, Apple has agreed on licensing terms for the clock design with SBB. However, the companies haven't disclosed how much Apple is paying.
It's interesting to see Apple on the losing end of a copyright infringement claim; especially after the hell it has put Samsung through over mobile patent lawsuits. After a lengthy battle with Samsung around the globe, a U.S. jury found Samsung guilty of copying the iPhone/iPad for its Galaxy line. Not only was Samsung ordered to pay $1.05 billion USD in damages, but a court date on December 6 may lead to more product bans for the South Korean electronics maker. Apple is also looking to boost that $1.05 billion fine to $3 billion.
Source: The Verge
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