<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"Apple is at it again.\u00A0According to reports, the company has pulled a free Tetris app from its App Store, called Tris after Apple contacted the developer, Noah Witherspoon, on behalf of The Tetris Company.\nApple said that The Tetris Company considered Tris in violation of trademark and copyright laws and that he would be forced to remove it from the App store.\u00A0 For his part, Witherspoon said that he might be able to win in a lawsuit with The Tetris Company, but lacked the financial backing to do it.\n\"To clarify: if Apple had not told me they'd \"take action\" of their own if I didn't resolve the \u201Cdispute,\u201D Tris would be staying up,\" Witherspoon said in a blog posting on his site. \"I don't think this will be permanent; when I have the time and can find a good copyright lawyer, I'll be figuring out exactly what my position is and how I can make Tris available again.\"\nUntil then, Tris will be available until Wednesday, at which time Witherspoon will be removing it from the App Store.\nIs this the new face of the App Store: a place where companies that have the resources to bully developers can get whatever they want?\u00A0 Unfortunately, it looks that way.\n\nThe App Store promised to be a haven for high-quality apps that could be used on the iPhone and iPod touch.\u00A0 It promised to offer the array of applications we've wanted out of the iPhone and promote the availability of free apps that small, independent developers would create.\nInstead, it has become the haven for bullying on the part of major organizations under the guise of \"copyright infringement\" and trademark law.\u00A0 It has become a place where developers simply aren't free to follow their hearts and create what they want for fear of facing a lawsuit from a company that can afford it.\nGranted, companies don't have a choice and must protect their copyrights.\u00A0 But when does that practice end and bullying begin?\u00A0 In the case of Tris, where the game looks startlingly similar to Tetris, I can understand.\nBut when it comes to something like BoxOffice or NetShare or countless other apps that have quietly been removed from the App Store, I can't understand the problem.\u00A0 The App Store is a place where developers can offer applications that improve your experience and can do so regardless of bankroll.\nBut as it becomes more popular and more companies are starting to realize that their own offerings can be beaten by small developers, the App Store is becoming a place where bankroll really does matter and being a small developer means moving aside and getting less-than preferential treatment.\nIt's a shame."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2008/08/26/iphone-tris-app/>