iFart Mobile to Pull My Finger: You stink

The maker of iPhone app iFart Mobile has taken rival Air-O-Matic to court over the rights to use the term "pull my finger."

(Credit: InfoMedia)

The iPhone farting app market is starting to get pretty noisy.

iFart Mobile, maker of an app that simulates farting noises, asked a court on Friday to rule that it can use the term "pull my finger" without risking trademark infringement claims by another iPhone fart app named, you guessed it, Pull My Finger.

InfoMedia, which developed iFart Mobile, filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in Colorado District Court and named rival Air-O-Matic as defendant.

In a blog posting, InfoMedia said it filed the complaint after an attorney for Air-O-Matic asked the company to pay $50,000 to its rival for using the terminology.

Air-O-Matic had also complained to Apple that InfoMedia was guilty of unfair business practices and trademark infringement because it used the term "pull my finger" in a news release and YouTube promo video. Air-O-Matic also asked that iFart Mobile be removed from the iPhone App Store, but Apple told the companies to work it out among themselves.

In its filing with the court, InfoMedia claims the term "pull my finger" is common English slang and a "descriptive phrase" and therefore not covered by trademark.

"I've got nothing against the people who make Pull My Finger. In my opinion, their app was inferior to ours," InfoMedia's Joel Comm wrote in the blog post. "As a matter of good will, I changed the press release the very same day they contacted me. I have also changed the name of the video to show that there are no hard feelings."

Representatives from Air-O-Matic could not be reached for comment on the filing, and their lawyer did not immediately return a call and e-mail seeking comment Friday evening.

The iPhone fart app market is nothing to hold your nose over. There are at least 75 different flatulence simulation software apps on the App Store, according to InfoMedia's filing.

I don't know which company is in the right here, but frankly, this whole mess stinks.

[xim1970]

Really...you buy a $600 phone to look all cool and tech-savvy, and probably download some games and useful software, and then...you actually GET a "fart application"? What the hell has the world come to? Free or not, a stupid idea. (BTW, I checked out a "Fart Generator" maybe 5 years ago, and it was funny for about 5 minutes...if you have this on your phone, you are either a 13 year old male (who doesn't deserve and iPhone, because what 13 yo can afford the fees), or you are a 40 year old idiot who wants to be a 13 year old male who can't afford the fees for an iPhone.
Now, I know this is supposed to be a humorous app (from Air-O-Matic's website: "The flatulence revolution has begun. Our iPhones can now fart. It is truly an exciting time for technology." What I think is worse than a 40 yo who wants to be a teenager is this...two companies are actually fighting over the phrase "pull my finger"? Here's my idea for software: pull my finger and text messages, emails, and voice mails will be left on both companies' CEO's iPhones texting or burping the phrase "YOU'RE BOTH MORONS!"

[maverick_nick]

Grown men fighting over farts. Seriously, as a software developer I think that this is ridiculous. Perhaps the outcome of this debacle should be decided by the longest fart or something along those lines, because that's how sensible trademark disputes are in general.

[mrisnow]

Yea, this has to be 2nd or 3rd worst legal battle I've ever heard of.

[acotas548]

Isn't the Web Accelerator browser specific? Granted I haven't used it since it first came out, so I may remember incorrectly OR it may have changed. In any case, if it is indeed a browser plugin and not something that runs outside of the browser, I fail to see how it could affect Chrome.
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[gsekse]

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[MrZook]

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[Idyot]

Happy Valentine's Day!

[setti7]

The ifart app is proof that the apple platform is the "cutting" edge platform !

[Mister Winky]

Ding. Ding. Ding. We have a winner! ;-)

I'm waitng for the iPhone Brown Edition -- 5% of the purchase price goes to flatulence prevention programs.

[62Sparkplug]

Combine some AUDIO from these "gas bag" apps with a VIDEO clip of "Monkey Boy" Balmer "dancing" and you've got a surefire winner.

Welcome to the Age of True Bipartisanship!

[dadsgravy]

That's a lot of sour nerd comments.

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[TheMilkybarKid]

I'm thinking of naming my next software app "You're pulling my leg" and see how far that would go in a court battle with our rivals using that phrase in their commercial for their sofftware app "You're taking the mickey"

A joke is a joke, so see the funny side of it you stupid companies and just let it go, spend the money on helping some kids in Africa or somewhere else that needs a good helping hand!

Idiots!