Creative CEO Sim Wong Hoo once again rattle his saber at Apple , this timespeaking to the BBC . Sim reiterated Creative ’s threat to “ quest for sharply ” its U.S. patent for digital music instrumentalist navigation systems .
U.S. patent of invention 6,928,433 , which originative callsthe Zen Patentfor short , describes a method for form content on a digital medicine player that , at least superficially , seems similar to the system used by Apple for its iPod intersection — music file are tagged with metadata , which is used to sire content in hierarchically unionized menus . Creative beat Apple to market with a bill of fare - driven digital music player in September 2000 , more than a year before Apple insert the iPod .
At the time the Zen Patent was harbinger , Creative Labs President Craig McHugh tell that his company was “ evaluating all alternatives ” including licensing and litigation .
Despite Creative ’s early offerings in the market place , Apple has since become the prevalent player , and now provide products in every segment of the marketplace , from the inexpensive and small iPod shambling to the 60 GB video - capable iPod . By some estimate , Apple has 80 percent of the market share for hard driveway - free-base digital medicine players , hand Creative a remote second place .
More than a twelvemonth ago , Sim infamously “ declared war ” on Apple , and said that he intended “ to out - market everyone ” with new digital music products . Creative ’s Leslie Townes Hope at the fourth dimension was to terminate Apple as the industry ’s top digital medicine equipment shaper — a programme which did not come to realization , as Apple has contain the predominant spot throughout the year , and shows no sign of decelerate down .
Sim was in the U.K. to introduce Creative ’s unexampled Zen Vision : M , a little and sleek video - capable music player that ’s perceived as a direct competition to the Modern iPod , which Apple introduce in October . The $ 329 Zen Vision : M can defend 30 GB of information and have a brilliant color screen and slim design . Creative claims it can exhibit 4 multiplication the color and has twice the battery spirit of the $ 299 30 GB iPod .
Shares of Creative were down 2.21 pct to 7.95 in morning trading .
