[robbrown451]

He'll just get a cease and desist. No need for lawyers unless he wants to fight it, or if he is making significant money off this app (which I doubt).

Good chance Bose will be aware of the bad publicity it would create to be too aggressive about this, it just would make them look bad for not providing such a thing in the first place. They have to defend their trademark, yeah, but unless this is actually a well known product, they aren't at risk of it being genericized.

[dubcanada]

This isn't a david vs goliath this is a clear violation of trademark law and other laws and borderline illegal.

They reverse engineer a protocol, built an app for it, bought a domain with a single character (s -> z) difference (cyber-squatting) and are charging for it.

[robbrown451]

That is not cyber squatting... it's not like they are trying to get people who accidentally misspell Bose. I don't think they are trying to deceive either, they are making it crystal clear that this isn't a Bose produced app, but they are also making clear that it is FOR Bose devices.

And it isn't a "clear violation of trademark law" either, almost nothing is clear in trademark law until a court makes a ruling.

Regardless, fine, big corporations will do what big corporations will do. I don't think the Bozeapp guy is risking anything other than having to change the name, or possibly pull the app. Big deal. "Hope you hire lawyers" is an extreme comment.

I wish more of us in communities like this would cheer on the little guy, rather than jumping to the defense of big litigious companies (before they have even acted). Reverse engineering a protocol, because the big company didn't bother accommodating your device, seems well within the spirit of a forum called "Hacker News." To me, reverse engineering a protocol so you can add functionality is no different from what hot rodders have done to their automobile engines for a century. You're figuring out how it works so you can make it work more to your liking.

(and yes, in my opinion it is totally a David and Goliath situation)

[jeffreyrogers]

> They reverse engineer a protocol, built an app for it, bought a domain with a single character (s -> z) difference (cyber-squatting) and are charging for it.

None of these things are crimes.

[dragonwriter]

> None of these things are crimes.

Perhaps, but no one is talking about criminal charges. Torts, like the trademark violation here, are still illegal and a basis for legal consequences, you just don’t get prison, death, or other uniquely-criminal penalties for them.