Apple wins iTunes interface patent

[Mac Reporter]

By John Borland
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
Apple Computer has won a patent for the interface of its iTunes music software, underscoring the growing importance of the multimedia business for the company.

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued Apple a patent for its media player software interface on May 4, along with several other features of the company's high-profile products. Other parts of the iTunes software, including the ability to stream songs over a network to another copy of the program, had been the subject of earlier patents.

Apple has been the recipient of thousands of patents, ranging--in just in the last month alone--from the iTunes software components to the swivel arm joint supporting the latest iMac's flat-panel screen.

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