During the 1960s, Beatlemania swept the world as the Fab Four toured and the Beatles became embedded in the minds of thousands of fans.
Today, iPod-mania\ is sweeping the nation as many students walk to class listening to their favorite music group with tiny white headphones in their ears.
Last Wednesday, the two manias clashed as a trial opened in London with Apple Corps, the music company set up by the Beatles, claiming Apple Computer, Inc.'s iTunes broke a 1991 $26 million settlement in which Apple Computer, Inc. agreed to stay out of the music business.
According to the Times Online UK edition, Steve Jobs, chief executive of Apple Computer, Inc. founded his company in 1976 using the logo of a rainbow-colored apple with a bite taken out of it. Apple Corps, which was founded in 1968 and uses a logo of a Granny smith apple, sued in 1981 and accepted an $80,000 settlement and a promise that the computer company would stay out of the music business.
The companies clashed again in 1989 after Apple Computer, Inc. introduced a music-making program. The computer company settled in 1991 for $26 million.
As reported in Business Week Online, the 1991 agreement gave Apple Computer, Inc. the right to the Apple trademark when it came to things like electronic goods, computers and data transmission and broadcasting services.
The trademark has come into question as music moves into the age of the iPod and iTunes. Apple Corps thinks that Apple Computer is breaking into the music business and illegally using their iconic fruit symbol.
""Apple Computer can go into the recorded music business in any way they want."" said Geoffrey Vos, Apple Corps. counsel in his opening presentation last week. ""What they cannot do is use Apple [trade]marks to do it.""
The Times Online reported March 29 that Vos took a justice through the process of downloading a song from iTunes and putting it on an iPod, pointing out how many times the Apple logo appeared during the journey.
In response, Apple Computer, Inc. lawyer Anthony Grabiner said that ""even a moron in a hurry"" could tell the difference between Apple Corps and iTunes, according to a March 30 report from MacNN (Apple, Macintosh and iPod News).
Apple Computer, Inc. also argued that iTunes is a data transmission service, a service the 1991 agreement allows. According to Business Week Online, Apple Computer, Inc. can argue that it is selling access to a service, where the trademark could have nothing to do with selling music. An argument can be made that downloads, including music or simple e-mail attachments, are all digital data that fall under data transmission services where the trademark is allowed.
""It sounds like they are using semantics to cloak what they actually may be doing with music,"" said Joseph Koykkar, UW-Madison music director for the dance programs.
UW-Madison junior Brett Bauer is an iPod user who is constantly adding new songs to the device. Even as a user of an Apple Computer, Inc. device he sides with Apple Corps.
""Apple Computer, Inc. I'm sure, would be outraged if someone were selling computers with the Apple logo on it,"" Bauer said.
UW-Madison sophomore Abby Wucherer, who has listened to Beatles music since childhood, also thinks Apple Corps is correct. While she does not download music, she can see why Apple Computer, Inc. might try to use the data transmission argument.
""It's a business, the goal is to make money,"" Wucherer said. ""I'm not sure there's any way to prove that Apple Corps is losing money because of Apple Computer, Inc.""
In her view, Wucherer brings, up a good point. Presently, Beatles songs cannot be legally downloaded. Business Week Online suggested that the companies could strike a settlement making the Beatles available on the world's most popular music download service. Both parties could profit.
""That'd be my final perspective,"" Koykkar said. ""If they could work something out like that it'd be win-win for both of them.""
Until Apple Computer, Inc. and Apple Corps can ‘Come Together' with a settlement or a decision is reached, the two companies will continue their feud over a little fruity symbol.
–CNN.com contributed this report.
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