Apple’s legal adventures don’t show any sign of lessening. No, I’m not referring to those little lawsuits that you regularly read about in their SEC filings. Instead, I’m talking about the larger issues that Apple faces in the course of normal operations, such as that recent matter with Apple Corps, the company run by the Beatles, their heirs, and “their people.”

That particular skirmish may have a pleasant outcome: The near-future release of music by The Beatles in downloadable form on iTunes and elsewhere.

Then there was the issue of the iPhone, and Apple’s rights to deliver a product using that name. After a few weeks of on-and-off discussions, they made nice with Cisco Systems, with vague promises that they’ll be working together on “inoperability,” whatever that means. Maybe we’ll see better Mac support on Linksys routers (Linksys is owned by Cisco, in case you hadn’t heard)? A good question, and one that won’t be answered anytime soon.

But that’s a small matter, and I suppose it wouldn’t have made much of a difference if the gadget was called an iPod phone instead. Well, it would involve an extra syllable, and maybe that’s a little awkward from marketing standpoint. But nobody has to think about any of that now, since the matter is moot.

On the other hand, there are other issues that Apple is confronting, one that exists and another that might, both of which could potentially cause some degree of aggravation.

Story continued in this week’s Tech Night Owl Newsletter.

This article was posted on Monday, February 26th, 2007 at 12:28 AM and is filed under News and tagged with: Apple Corps, Cisco, Cisco Systems, Gadget, Good Question, Iphone, Itunes, Lawsuits, Linksys, Mac Support, Night Owl, Owl, Promises.