A photographer is suing Apple, claiming the company stole an image taken by him to promote a mobile application that allows users to search for television programs on iPhones.
Louis Psihoyos claims that promotional materials for the i.TV app used an image from his portfolio titled “1000 TVs”.
“Version 1.0 of i.TV directly infringed on Mr. Psihoyos’ copyright by incorporating the 1000 TVs image without permission,” his attorneys claim in court papers filed this week in a US District Court.
They also argue that “by commercially exploiting the plaintiff’s copyrighted image in the i.TV application”, the company has recorded “significant economic gains”.
He has even submitted a paper from a law professor at the University of Denver to support his allegations.
“The similarities between the protectable elements of Psihoyos’ photograph and the images used in Apple’s ad campaign are striking,” Viva Moffat wrote.
Damages sought in the case amount to over $US2 million. The lawsuit is actually the second brought against the company by Psihoyos, after he sued Apple in 2007 for a similar claim.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
