Psystar wants to sell Mac cloning technology to third parties

The company Psystar, which makes cheap clones of Apple computers, plans to sell the technology that allows Mac OS X to run on PCs to other manufacturers. Whether this technique is legal is up for debate.

In April 2008, Psystar released the Open Computer, a low-cost alternative to Apple’s Mac systems. Mac OS X can normally only be installed on Apple computers, but Psystar had pulled a trick that made it possible to run the operating system on a regular PC. Apple was not happy about this and took Psystar to court. According to Apple, there was illegal use of its OS, because the operating system can only be installed on Apple hardware according to the license. The method used by Psystar would also violate the Digital Millennium Copyright Act because it circumvents security.

The questionable legal status of the technology has not prevented Psystar from offering it to other manufacturers for a fee. According to Psystar, the latest version is specifically designed to install Snow Leopard, the latest version of Mac OS X, on regular PCs. In a statement, Psystar said, “In an effort to distribute Snow Leopard to a growing number of people, the license will allow manufacturers to have their hardware certified by Psystar and equip their computers with our unique technology.”

Psystar has not yet disclosed whether the company has already entered into agreements with other manufacturers, so reports Information Week. It does not seem likely that major computer manufacturers will get involved as long as the legal status of the technology is still unclear. The lawsuit that should clarify this is still pending at the court in San Francisco.