Why you can't download John Lennon's early music from iTunes

This is just stupid.

LONDON (AP) -- Two legendary companies in the music industry faced off in court Wednesday in a trademark battle over a piece of fruit.

Apple Corps Ltd., the Beatles' record company and guardian of the band's musical heritage and business interests, is suing Apple Computer Inc., claiming the company violated a 1991 agreement by entering the music business with its iTunes online store.

Geoffrey Vos, a lawyer representing Apple Corps, argued in Britain's High Court that characterizing the download system as an electronic device was a ''perversion'' of the constraints laid down in the agreement between the two companies.

Vos said Steve Jobs, co-founder and chief executive of Apple Computer, has said the downloading of music from the Internet was the same as buying an LP in the modern world.

Apple Computer's argument that it uses the apple mark only in connection with a delivery system was ''plainly wrong,'' Vos said.

''What Apple Computers are not doing (when) using the Apple mark is selling software, delivery systems, or anything of the like. They are selling music,'' Vos said. ''and that is in violation of the agreement.''

I find it hard to believe any reasonably intelligent person would confuse these two companies.