Cartier sues Apple over third party iPhone watch software [U]

Luxury watch maker Cartier International filed suit against Apple today for allowing a third party iPhone developer to post an application depicting a watch image which Cartier claims infringes on its designs. Later, however, it withdrew the complaint.

The watch maker originally insisted that it has never authorized Apple to use images that appear similar to the company's watches, despite the fact that the iPhone title, named Fake Watch, was only a software representation of certain famous watch designs. But in a quick retreat from its stance earlier in the day, Cartier pulled the lawsuit after Apple removed the allegedly offending software from the App Store.

"Our concerns have been addressed," Fox Rothschild LLD attorney Jonathan Lagarenne said on behalf of Cartier.

The free Fake Watch application did enable users to obtain the time using their iPhone or iPod touch, a direct blow to Cartier's fancy watch business. The software developer also offered a premium, paid version of the app under the name "Fake Watch Gold Edition."

Both versions shamelessly offered to present the time using a images of "look-alike famous wristwatches." Apple did not offer a public comment on the suit.

The suit would have had an impact on Apple's mobile software approval process, which has frequently been maligned by developers annoyed by the length of time it takes to get an application approved, frustrated by the occasional rejection of applications based on issues that may seem arbitrary or unfair, or shocked by the nature of certain titles that do manage to make it through the approvals process.

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39 Comments

addabox

said about 14 years ago

I just read where Apple denied Eucalyptus, a very nicely executed e-book reader app, because one of the public domain titles it allows you to access is the Kama Sutra.

This despite the fact you can get that on several other e-book readers already in the App Store, on via Mobile Safari, for that matter.

You get the feeling that the App Store approval process is just some guys who were tasked with keeping up with the flood of applications, and that they weren't really given any guidelines beyond something vague and not very binding, so they just go by their gut. Like there's one guy who's really a prude, and if he happens to see something that offends him he rejects, whereas the next guy might be paranoid about IP, and the next guy thinks fat jokes are right out, and so on.

Whatever it is, it's totally broken and Apple needs to do something yesterday. It just make them look amateurish and erratic.

kibitzer

said about 14 years ago

I wonder if Cartier made any effort first to contact either Apple and Fake Watch to demand that they cease and desist from presenting the Cartier watch images. Otherwise, a combination of overaggressive Cartier marketers and junkyard dog lawyers could have launched their suit out of the box, for the free product publicity that Cartier would reap.