[I-mobile-u] question involving mobile deployment in Apple apps store (and Android)

[Justin Anderson]

Hi Linh,

Welcome aboard the bandwagon. We're glad you like what we've done so far. And keep in mind that the framework will become easier to adopt in the coming months as we improve it.

The EFF article you linked to is based on an outdated version of the agreement http://www.eff.org/files/20100127_iphone_dev_agr.pdf, but it's at least a publicly available document, so I can refer to it without having to speak about MIT's situation directly.

You can tell your General Counsel that Apple's agreement makes no claim on a developer's intellectual property. The Independent Development clause you mention only states that Apple will not give up its own right to create IP, not that it gains the rights to anyone else's IP. That leaves things the same as they always are — if you want to keep others from copying your idea, you need to patent and/or copyright it.

Also, I disagree with Andrew about Google. Their distribution agreement is worse than Apple's http://www.android.com/us/developer-distribution-agreement.html. Google actually does require that you grant them license to your IP, and for more than just distribution. They have their own version of Apple's Independent Development clause, "5.1 You grant to Google a nonexclusive, worldwide, and royalty-free license to ... use the Products to make improvements to the Android platform." That could definitely be interpreted to mean what you think Apple's Independent Development clause means. Apple, on the other hand, doesn't ask for any grant of license.

Justin Anderson
Project Lead - Mobile Computing
MIT IS&T

On Nov 17, 2010, at 10:04 PM, linh wrote:

> Andrew,
> Thanks for the valuable insights.
> 
> I do found section 15.5 to be troublesome:
> 
> 15.5 Independent Development.
> Nothing in this Agreement will impair Apple's right to develop, acquire, license, market, promote,
> or distribute products or technologies that perform the same or similar functions as, or otherwise
> compete with, Applications, Licensed Applications or any other products or technologies that
> You may develop, produce, market, or distribute.
> 
> If I read it correctly, your ideas could become part of Apple product(s) without due recourse.
> 
> - linh -
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