Suits and Sosumis

Fun fact: Apple Computer was sued over the use of its name by Apple Records (think Beatles). They lost (Apple Computers was not competition and therefore not infringing on their name). In retaliation Apple Computer named their startup sound “Sosumi”. Here’s the blurb from former Apple engineer Greg Marriot (from his resume):

“TMON Professional. I wrote the trap recording part of TMON. Check it out, it’s kind of cool. And fast. Another hammer. I like making hammers. Oh, I said that already. So sue me. (That reminds me… I helped name the Sosumi sound in System 7. It was called Xylophone, but Apple’s lawyers didn’t like that name in light of the Apple Records lawsuit. Too music-y, they said, as they demanded the name be changed. I looked one of Apple’s lawyers dead in the eye and explained that Sosumi was a Japanese word for beautiful flower.)”

When Apple began working with MIDI technology they were sued by McCartney et al again and lost.