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Apple Applies for Metadata Management Patents

by , 1:15 PM EST, December 30th, 2005

Apple Computer has applied for patents covering metadata management, according to Bill Slawski, who uncovered a series of Apple related patent applications in commenting on this writer's most recent column about spotlight tracking your file transfers in metadata. Two of the patents in particular seem to provide broad coverage.

One application makes some broad claims for a Web browser user interface that enables "a user to switch between displaying a file and displaying a feed related to the file."

The other applications make claims on managing metadata and indices. Those claims are also particularly broad; some might say incredibly broad. For example, the first claim of one application basically claims that Apple owns the ability to aggregate metadata from two or more programs for searching.  

Claim 1 of patent application no. 20050289133, states:

1. A machine implemented method of managing data, the method comprising: capturing metadata from a plurality of files created by a plurality of different software applications which execute on a data processing system, wherein the type of information in metadata for files of a first software application differs from the type of information in metadata for files of a second software application; searching the metadata from the plurality of files created by the plurality of different software applications."

If this patent application issues with the claims in substantially the same form, it could basically lock out all comers. It could easily impact Microsoft's ability to implement its search techniques if the patent claims issue as written. 

Of course, just because Apple made claims to that effect in the patent application, does not guarantee that the United States Patent and Trademark Office will issue the application as a patent with such broad coverage (or at all for that matter).

Regardless, it will be interesting to see what everyone will dig up by way of prior art and if these broad claims will survive.

Mr. Slawski provides a great list (with links) of all the patent applications.

Observer Comments

Show: Subjects Only | Full Comments
Close Name:Rainy Day Posts: 607 Joined: 07 Jun 2005
Subject: They’ve done it before

If the US patent office can grant a patent for a stick, i’m sure it can grant this one.

View Name:Guest
Subject: They were the first in an OS
View Name:Guest
Subject: That's not quite how it works...
View Name:Guest
Subject: Apple = Microsoft
View Name:Guest
Subject: Dumbo the smartest of all Elephants.
View Name:Guest
Subject: Key Difference Between Apple & Microsoft
Close Name:Bosco Posts: 972 Joined: 03 Jun 2002
Subject: Microsoft kills puppies too!

I saw it in Pirates of Silicone Beach. Bill Gates and Steve Balmer have a secret building in Redmond where they take stray puppies and kill them. Sometimes, after a round of golf, they go to the Redmond Pound and buy abandoned puppies that they can kill. Just before each killing, they show the puppy the blue screen of death, then send him to puppy heaven. It is really sick that these people have money. It is even sicker that we let their monopoly continue. I hope everyone will write their Senator and ask him to outlaw rich people killing puppies. Steve Jobs would never do this.

View Name:Guest
Subject: Enough with the MS-Apple nonsense
View Name:Guest
Subject: Re: Enough with the MS-Apple nonsense
View Name:Guest
Subject:
View Name:Guest
Subject: Thanks for making my point
View Name:Guest
Subject: Sound on the 'net
View Name:Guest
Subject: Not quite
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