apps question & apple hijacking

[noriyori]

So here's one that just popped in my head.

Is apple able to steal ideas brought to the table by people that have developed apps for jailboken iPhones.

For example, can apple add a feature in contacts that lets you add a persons contact image to the springboard for a one touch call to the contacts preferred number? I believe the jailbroken app for doing this is called springdial.

 

[waterskier2007]

For example, can apple add a feature in contacts that lets you add a persons contact image to the springboard for a one touch call to the contacts preferred number? I believe the jailbroken app for doing this is called springdial.

why not, they arent patented

 

[razorianfly]

I think I read that, once a developer surrenders his/her application to Apple's Application Store for processing, they agree, that by being accepted into the developer program to start with, any applications can be used, distributed and modified by Apple themselves.

So technically, yes.

R-Fly

 

[waterskier2007]

I think I read that, once a developer surrenders his/her application to Apple's Application Store for processing, they agree, that by being accepted into the developer program to start with, any applications can be used, distributed and modified by Apple themselves.

So technically, yes.

R-Fly

the OP was talking about hacked/jailbroken apps

 

[noriyori]

Yeah, I kinda figured (after pondering for a bit) any features from native apps for jailbroken phones would be fair game.
I'm not sure if there is this situation out there, but what about a feature that someone has patented for use with any mobile device that that same developer has built into a jailbroken iPhone app. I guess some legal questioning comes in there. But I wonder if since they built it into an app being distributed and for an essentially illegal manner this nullifies their patent.... oh all these hypotheticals.

I didn't know about losing the rights to your ideas by distributing via the app store. I'm no fan of that. I see the phone as just another computing platform and developers should be able to hold the rights to their ideas. Just like on any other OS.

I think I read that, once a developer surrenders his/her application to Apple's Application Store for processing, they agree, that by being accepted into the developer program to start with, any applications can be used, distributed and modified by Apple themselves.

So technically, yes.

R-Fly

 

[admanimal]

I think I read that, once a developer surrenders his/her application to Apple's Application Store for processing, they agree, that by being accepted into the developer program to start with, any applications can be used, distributed and modified by Apple themselves.

So technically, yes.

R-Fly

This is entirely incorrect and in fact nearly the exact opposite of what the agreement actually says.

 

[Greencardman]

Except for that one horrible case from Texas, I don't think you can protect ideas. So Apple could steal your idea, but they can't steal your code. So yeah, if Apple wanted to implement that contact list thingie you mentioned, they could, as long as they didn't use your code or your designs. Just like anyone can make a word editor, social network, etc. Ideas are ideas, they're not owned.

On the other hand, Apple has some incentive not to do this. If developers got the impression that Apple steals ideas a lot, they would stop developing for the platform. But some people are going to get screwed, like whoever developed a remote control app like the one Apple is rumored to have developed in the 2.0 software (A bigger example is Adobe with Final Cut Pro).