According to the Apple Insider, on Tuesday, among a multitude of patents, Apple was also provided rights to the page-turning animation.
Much of page-flip animation has long been open-source, and in some cases, like the Laputa Book Reader used on the Android platform, dates back to 2010, while Apple made its patent application in 2011. I just checked my own pageflip app purchase and that was in October 2008. And I had purchased only after page-curling and page-flipping animation had already become mainstream.
We do not yet know how far Apple is going to push this patent down our throats, but if the Samsung war on points like rectangles with rounded corners is any indication, a lot of mid-sized companies may face imminent doom.
As far as I am aware there are many applications being sold on the internet from at least 5-7 years ago, which use page-flipping or page-turning, exactly as shown in the patent diagram posted on Apple Insider.
This would be going down hard, if I had to give up on most of my favorite platforms and long purchased apps like pageflip and Issuu.
Apple Insider reads, “The page turning animation IP was first filed for in December 2011 as an ornamental design for a display screen. Much like other Apple design patents, the basic line drawing is adequate enough to get the basic feel for the animation.”
Possibly, the patent for the page-turning animation is only for iOS apps, but none of us can tell the future.
The image used in this article is courtesy of Apple Insider.
Summary:
To millions of users using page-turning or page-flip animation for years, this news would come as a shocker when Apple is provided patent law to the page-turning animation. Many applications being sold on the internet, which use page-flipping or page-turning with apps like page flip and Issuu, this news is not easy to digest. According to an Apple insider, the patent for the page-turning animation is only for iOS apps, but none of us can predict the future.