Apple won’t patent software interface iPod

Apple’s patent application for the iPod’s software interface was rejected last month by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The patent application, which was filed on September 26, 2002, is hindered by a previous patent application. Surprisingly, this earlier filing comes from Microsoft, which filed a patent on May 30, 2002 for a system that “generates playlists from a collection of media assets.” Fortunately for Apple, this is not yet a final rejection; the company has three months to challenge this decision.

Other elements of the iPod have since been patented; these too were rejected several times. This also applies to many patents; it is not uncommon for a patent to be rejected several times before it is finally accepted. Microsoft’s patent has also been rejected a number of times. The last non-final rejection was on December 11 last year, after new documentation challenged the final rejection of June 14 that year.