Sue me, I said 'app store'

The New York Times had an interesting piece on the legal squabbles of tech companies when involved in the use of daily language and everyday words. Microsoft sues Apple and Apple sues Amazon for the use of the words "app store".

Suing over app store is not only an Apple privilege. Facebook has tried to trademark words like 'like' or 'poke' and also 'wall' and 'face' and 'book' ... And Windows is no stranger to trying to play at the same game, trademarking words like 'windows', 'office' or 'word'.

The New York Times cites a Web branding expert, Christopher Johnson, saying there is 'a land grab going on'. Apparently the US Patent and Trademark Office lags about 5 years behind in allowing companies to claim generic words. An basically, the giants can fool around all they want, it's the small companies that get hurt (like Placebook that changed it's name when lawyers came calling).

As always, it's the lawyers who benefit from these very expensive and lenghty trademark proceedings ...

When I try to explain what a personalised citizens' portal, containing government services, could be like, I use the term 'app store' instead of portal. Because portal is the wrong word whichever way you turn it. And because everybody understands "app store" Am I going to be sued now too?

IE8 ... IE9. ... IE 27543

We zijn al geëvolueerd vergeleken met sommige (professionele) omgevingen als we een IE6 en een FireFox kunnen en mogen gebruiken en vandaag is de beta versie van IE8 beschikbaar. In Las Vegas is de Mix bezig en naar 't schijnt hebben de Microsoft execs (die er altijd wat onnozel uitzien als ze de coole, hippe developer willen uithangen) best veel indruk gemaakt met hun IE8. En , niet onbelangrijk, interoperability wordt heel belangrijk (dat zal wel) ... afwachten dus wat het wordt. De betaversie is alvast hier te bekijken.