A small technology firm is suing Apple, claiming that the company's hit iTunes platform violates a patent it filed for music distribution in 2000. ( dpa )
The lawsuit was filed Tuesday, according to a statement released by ZapMedia on Wednesday. The company claims that Apple had stolen the firm's idea for a digital media distribution after it showed its ideas to the iconic computer company in the late 1990s.
ZapMedia claimed its patent covered a "system and method for distributing media assets to user devices via a portal synchronized by said user devices" as well as a "system and method for distributing media assets to user devices and managing user rights of the media assets."
The company said it tried to strike an agreement with Apple, but talks apparently broke down after several failed attempts to come to an agreement. ZapMedia is asking for a royalty cut on both sales of iPods and iTunes music sales. Apple does not comment on pending lawsuits.