As Bose And Beats Square Off, Apple Pulls Bose Gear From All Stores
Just as you won't find any copies of Windows 8.1 or Surface Pro 3 tablets being sold in any Apple Store locations -- Apple and Microsoft are rivals, after all -- the Cupertino outfit is no longer carrying Bose products, either. Like Microsoft, Bose is now a competitor to Apple following the company's $3 billion acquisition of Beats Electronics.
Apple used to sell a selection of Bose-branded speakers and headphones, but all such inventory has now been pulled off of store shelves. The move isn't all that surprising, not just because the two are competitors now, but also because tensions are high between the two companies.
Just two months after Apple purchased the Beats brand, Bose came out of the woodwork to sue the company for allegedly infringing on a series of technology patents related to noise cancelling technology. According to the lawsuit, Bose was seeking unspecified monetary damages and an injunction for "all infringing sales and other infringing acts by Beats."
The two sides recently agreed to a settlement without disclosing terms to the public, but lest anyone thing the bad blood between Apple and Bose has been purged, think again. Apple's decision to yank Bose inventory from its stores is proof that these two companies about as far from BFFs as it gets.
One also has to believe that Apple is miffed at a recently extended sponsorship agreement between Bose and the NFL that effectively bans players from wearing Beats headphones while conducting TV interviews during pre-season training camp, practice sessions, and on game day starting before the opening kickoff on through to post-game interviews conducted in the locker room or on the podium.
Apple used to sell a selection of Bose-branded speakers and headphones, but all such inventory has now been pulled off of store shelves. The move isn't all that surprising, not just because the two are competitors now, but also because tensions are high between the two companies.
Just two months after Apple purchased the Beats brand, Bose came out of the woodwork to sue the company for allegedly infringing on a series of technology patents related to noise cancelling technology. According to the lawsuit, Bose was seeking unspecified monetary damages and an injunction for "all infringing sales and other infringing acts by Beats."
The two sides recently agreed to a settlement without disclosing terms to the public, but lest anyone thing the bad blood between Apple and Bose has been purged, think again. Apple's decision to yank Bose inventory from its stores is proof that these two companies about as far from BFFs as it gets.
One also has to believe that Apple is miffed at a recently extended sponsorship agreement between Bose and the NFL that effectively bans players from wearing Beats headphones while conducting TV interviews during pre-season training camp, practice sessions, and on game day starting before the opening kickoff on through to post-game interviews conducted in the locker room or on the podium.
