Apple Strips Monster of Its License to Make Apple Approved Accessories

Apple has stripped Monster of its license to make certified Apple accessories following a lawsuit the company filed against Beats Electronics in January, reports the WSJ. Monster has been making Apple accessories since 2005 under the MFi (Made for iPhone/iPod/iPad) program and some of its products have been sold in Apple Stores.

Monster’s general counsel David Tognotti said Noreen Krall, Apple’s chief litigation counsel, told him that their agreement was being terminated, effective May 5, because the relationship between the two companies is no longer “mutually beneficial” in the wake of Monster’s lawsuit. According to Mr. Tognotti, Ms. Krall said the suit would “destroy the working relationship” between Apple and Monster.

Monster is allowed to sell its accessories as MFi approved through September but had to stop making new ones.


Tognotti told Apple that the move would significantly disrupt the company's business and noted that Monster and Apple had worked well together for many years with Monster paying over $12 million in licensing fees since 2008. About 900 of Monster's 4000 products are made through the MFi program.

“It shows a side of Apple that consumers don’t see very often,” Mr. Tognotti said. “Apple can be a bully.”

Monster's lawsuit accuses Beats and its co-founders of tricking them out of potential proceeds from the company's sale to Apple. It also alleges that Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine both stole the technology behind Monster headphones when the two companies worked together.

Tognotti feels that Apple's move is excessive considering they didn't directly sue Apple; rather, Apple "inherited this dispute" when it acquired Beats.


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