Judge Dismisses Psystar's Anti-Trust Counterclaim Against Apple

A California judge has dismissed a counterclaim from Psystar which asserted that Apple was violating federal and state anti-trust laws in limiting the sale and use of Mac OS X on Apple branded computers..

But in a 19-page order passed down on Tuesday, Judge William Alsup largely reject Psystar's claims and granted Apple's motion to have the countersuit thrown out of court should the clone maker not better its argument through an amended complaint that can be filed no later than Monday December 8th.

AppleInsider notes that Psystar attempted to define a "Mac OS market" in which Apple held a monopoly. Apple, of course, successfully disputed this definition of a "market" with which the judge agreed.

"Apple asks its customers to purchase Mac OS knowing that it is to be used only with Apple computers," he wrote. "It is certainly entitled to do so."

Psystar is a small company which sells a Mac clone using off-the-shelf PC parts and a modified version of Mac OS X Leopard. Apple sued Psystar over these products and that case is still pending.
Resource - MacRumors

Judge Orders Apple's New Hire to Stop Work

The drama continues for Apple's new employee Mark Papermaster who recently took a job at Apple to replace Tony Fadell. The transition has received more attention than usual due to a lawsuit filed by IBM.

Papermaster was said to have a non-compete agreement in place in which he agreed not to work at a competitor for a period of one year following his employment at IBM.

A new report reveals that a District Court judge has now ordered Papermaster to immediately stop work due to the possible violation of the agreement. Papermaster has argued that IBM and Apple are not competitors. Apple has said they will comply with the court's order but "are confident that Mark Papermaster will be able to ultimately join Apple when the dust settles".

Papermaster was hired at Apple to replace Fadell as senior vice president of Devices Hardware Engineering. Fortune provides a detailed timeline of the events of Papermaster's recruitment. Steve Jobs is said to have offered Papermaster an offer he couldn't refuse, a "once in a liftetime opportunity". Papermaster accepted the job offer despite a significant counteroffer from IBM.
Resource - MacRumors