So a Brit invented the iPod or rather the digital music player. Apparently Kane Kramer came up with the idea of a digital music player in 1979 but in typical British fashion let the patents slip through his fingers because of a lack of funding. His 'prior art' however has just been acknowledged and used by Apple to defend itself against a patent suit by Burst.com and it seems as if he might get a payout on his idea after all. Nice old Apple, though I'm sure it's enlightened self-interest I'm equally sure Mr Kramer doesn't care.
This is not the first time a Brit has rained on an American parade. The windsurfer patent was successfully challenged in the UK thus breaking the patent in Europe and incidentally opening the way for a major amount of innovative development of the sailboard. Peter Chilvers, a 12-year old Chichester schoolboy was responsible for this spoiler as he'd fixed a sail to a board years before the American company Windsurfing International had filed its patents.
Britain, pissing on American bonfires since 1984
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