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Author Topic: Commodore Business Machines live again !  (Read 6682 times)

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Offline VingtTrois

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #44 from previous page: August 13, 2015, 04:59:14 PM »
@eliyahu: :banana:

Quote
That’s where things stood until March, when Massimo Canigiani and Carlo Scattolini registered Commodore Business Machines Limited in the UK. The Italian entrepreneurs claim to have acquired rights for the brand and trademark in the mobile industry in 38 countries, including the US.

http://www.wired.com/2015/07/commodore-smartphone/
« Last Edit: August 13, 2015, 05:07:05 PM by VingtTrois »
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Offline Yasu

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #45 on: August 13, 2015, 11:56:33 PM »
Why do we even care? It could just as easily be called the Pepsi Phone, The Mazda Phone or the Communist Party of Chine Phone for all I care.

It's a generic smartphone running Android. Nothing exciting going on here.
 

Offline Duce

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #46 on: August 14, 2015, 04:43:40 AM »
No, it's not exciting, or even vaguely relevant, even.  It is just another low end Android phone with a decal or screened logo on it.  But...

In a hobby where a lot of people would buy a used roll of bathroom tissue in the name of "supporting Commodore" if it had the Boingball printed on it, it is pretty important to mention potential cash-grabs, esp. when it involves legal issues in regards to licensing.  We've had "noble companies" grave robbing the marque for years now, so this isn't anything we haven't seen before.  That hasn't kept people from opening their wallets for overpriced, underpowered and questionably licensed stuff before, though.

It's a cheap Android phone - available for a hundred bucks on Alibaba.  With a C= logo on it that apparently the sellers never bothered properly licensing.

There was a fair number of people here even on A.org willing to throw $400 at this phone in some vain attempt at retro chicness, or otherwise honoring the memory of a once great company, or simply reliving some of their youth spent with the real C= machines.  Whatever the reason, it's pretty important to know that this is just another scam cash grab.

It's a free market.  If overpaying for a low end phone to a company that seemingly never did the proper legalwork in regards to trademark licensing gets you off, buy the phone.  I'd honestly be curious to see how happy people are with it, because the hardware itself under the "real" name (Orgtec WaPhone) gets paltry reviews at best.  I doubt a screened on Chickenlips logs will change that much :)

Me, I'll stick with my new LG G4.  My boingball wallpaper and Amiga emulators give me all the Amiga "fix" I need on it, and such things didn't cost me a thin dime past what I paid for the phone ($200 on 2 yr contract, $45 a month contract costs, unlimited text/voice, 10 GB data).
 

Offline whabang

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #47 on: August 14, 2015, 01:48:14 PM »
Beating the dead horse since 2002.
 

Offline TheMagicM

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #48 on: August 14, 2015, 02:04:42 PM »
Quote from: whabang;793914
Trademark application opposed.
https://oami.europa.eu/eSearch/#details/trademarks/013930276


LOL.   Excellent.
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Offline Paulie85

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #49 on: August 15, 2015, 01:09:14 AM »
Quote from: Duce;793896
No, it's not exciting, or even vaguely relevant, even.  It is just another low end Android phone with a decal or screened logo on it.  But...

In a hobby where a lot of people would buy a used roll of bathroom tissue in the name of "supporting Commodore" if it had the Boingball printed on it, it is pretty important to mention potential cash-grabs, esp. when it involves legal issues in regards to licensing.  We've had "noble companies" grave robbing the marque for years now, so this isn't anything we haven't seen before.  That hasn't kept people from opening their wallets for overpriced, underpowered and questionably licensed stuff before, though.

It's a cheap Android phone - available for a hundred bucks on Alibaba.  With a C= logo on it that apparently the sellers never bothered properly licensing.

There was a fair number of people here even on A.org willing to throw $400 at this phone in some vain attempt at retro chicness, or otherwise honoring the memory of a once great company, or simply reliving some of their youth spent with the real C= machines.  Whatever the reason, it's pretty important to know that this is just another scam cash grab.

It's a free market.  If overpaying for a low end phone to a company that seemingly never did the proper legalwork in regards to trademark licensing gets you off, buy the phone.  I'd honestly be curious to see how happy people are with it, because the hardware itself under the "real" name (Orgtec WaPhone) gets paltry reviews at best.  I doubt a screened on Chickenlips logs will change that much :)

Me, I'll stick with my new LG G4.  My boingball wallpaper and Amiga emulators give me all the Amiga "fix" I need on it, and such things didn't cost me a thin dime past what I paid for the phone ($200 on 2 yr contract, $45 a month contract costs, unlimited text/voice, 10 GB data).




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCBOp-4U8OM


!
 

Offline Duce

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #50 on: August 15, 2015, 04:25:05 AM »
I'm not stopping anyone from buying one, Paulie.  I've been called a D*ck, and far worse, today alone.  :)  My apologies if I am coming off as patronizing to anyone sincerely interested in a "badged" device like this.  It's a free market, and all that.

What gets me mostly is news sites like Wired and their original article on this device that read like ad material.  Wired should be ashamed of the initial article they wrote on this.  A noobie copy intern would have wrote a better researched article.

No one bothered to dig into the fact it *is* a rebadged China phone at 2x+ the price.  It's easy to identify what the device actually is, a WaPhone.  No one at Wired bothered to check the legality of the license this new company has.  No one at Wired bothered to take into account that these guys had already reportedly screwed over a quite well known designer over what was quite frankly (the C64 phone mock up), an abortion of a design.  The whole article was linkbait solely written to get all the C= aficionados all worked up and thinking Commodore was back, ready to save the marque and brand and restore the grand hope of The Faithfuls.  One of which I am.  it was easier for Wired to take the lowbrow clickbait route, and Wired usually isn't too bad in that regard.  A bit of a let down is all, and I say that as someone who has subscribed to the print version of the magazine since the first issue 20+ years ago.  A subscription I won't be renewing.

It's a low spec phone.  If you are after a low to low/mid range at best - specc'ed Android phone, you can get one for $70 off contract that has similar specs from any US carrier.  S4's and S5's are even going for free these days with a contract on my own carrier, and despite the age, far better devices.  These C= phones are what I'd consider "burner phone" specs for $400.

Just do your homework and look past the write up on Wired, is all I suggest.  if the device suits your needs and is something you feel you want to support, the $400 cost or nothing I say is going to stop anyone.  But I do believe in truth in advertising, and it's my own opinion the device and company as a whole is just another one of the cash-grabs we're unfortunately so accustomed to in this scene.

I just don't like seeing anyone taken for a ride due to fond memories of their computing youth over what's really just a $400 screened on (decal maybe?) logo when you can buy a far better device for half the price, and in fact, you can buy the same phone sans Chickenlips logo for $100.

Anyone that does get one, please do post a review.  Do your homework on MediaTek chips before buying, though.  I say that as someone who's currently using a MediaTek chipped phone (Alcatel, mind you, not an Orgtec) as a paperweight.
« Last Edit: August 15, 2015, 04:35:38 PM by Duce »
 

Offline Blizz1220Topic starter

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Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #51 on: August 15, 2015, 08:04:53 AM »
@Duce

Well if you got a lot of complaints that means you must be
doing something right :roflmao:

I have a friend who is journalist and many a times he would
write inspiring articles about places he never even visited.
Journalists usual response to these kind of things is inviting
person(s) of importance to an interview and if you have two
sides both will claim they are the only one right , reading
between the lines doesn't help there.

There was no confirmation of Aros team helping this in any
way on forums and apart from authors of emulators to be
used these new people declare to be C64 and Amiga fans but
fail to show much facts for it apart from "Commodore is cool -
retweet this".
 

Offline number6

Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #52 on: August 16, 2015, 09:27:51 PM »
@thread

Quote
Cloanto on CBM/Amiga Copyrights

 Cloanto confirms that it has not granted any rights for making use of CBM/Amiga copyrights in recently announced smartphones.

 Aug. 16, 2015 / PRZen / LAS VEGAS -- Cloanto Corporation is the holder of the international copyrights for all copyrighted and copyrightable works created by the original Commodore/Amiga companies up to 1993, as recorded at the United States Copyright Office. These include ROM, operating system, boot code, application software, documentation, multimedia and other components as included in licensed packages such as Amiga Forever and C64 Forever.

Recently, some publications and news agencies reported that "Commodore Business Machines Ltd" (United Kingdom) might be selling, planning to sell or collecting money for orders of smartphone devices that claim to include software emulations of the PET, C64 and Amiga computers.

For the avoidance of doubt, Cloanto hereby confirms that it has not granted any rights to said UK company for bundling or otherwise distributing the original, copyrighted ROM and OS software code used by the PET, C64 and Amiga systems and their emulations.

etc.

Source

#6
 

Offline Pyromania

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Cloanto on CBM/Amiga Copyrights
« Reply #53 on: August 17, 2015, 02:01:52 AM »
News from Digital Journal

http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2645462

"Aug. 16, 2015 / PRZen / LAS VEGAS -- Cloanto Corporation is the holder of the international copyrights for all copyrighted and copyrightable works created by the original Commodore/Amiga companies up to 1993, as recorded at the United States Copyright Office. These include ROM, operating system, boot code, application software, documentation, multimedia and other components as included in licensed packages such as Amiga Forever and C64 Forever."

Click on link above to go to complete article.
 

Offline OlafS3

Re: Comoodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #54 on: August 17, 2015, 10:26:34 AM »
Quote from: number6;794021
@thread


etc.

Source

#6

noone needs for that material from Cloanto...
 

Offline spudje

Re: Commodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #55 on: August 17, 2015, 03:03:59 PM »
This is turning into a nice soap :D

 

Offline eliyahu

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Re: Commodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #56 on: August 17, 2015, 05:07:27 PM »
@thread

looks like the tech 'press' is starting to pick up the story. via number6 at AWN:

Quote
It seems that the Italian bloke who wanted to release a Commodore phone might be in a little hot water with people who own the trademark.

Italian Massimo Canigiani declared himself as the new owner of the  Commodore trademark. His newly established British based "Commodore  Business Machines Ltd" was going to sell Commodore Smartphones to retro  enthusiasts.

 It now appears that Canigiani didn't actually acquire the existing  trademark, he simply tried to have a new one registered. The application  is available publicly in the European trademark database but now it is  listed as "application opposed."
http://www.techeye.net/mobiles-2/commodore-phone-in-trademark-war

-- eliyahu
"How do you know I’m mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn’t have come here."
 

Offline OlafS3

Re: Commodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #57 on: August 17, 2015, 05:24:05 PM »
Quote from: eliyahu;794072
@thread

looks like the tech 'press' is starting to pick up the story. via number6 at AWN:

 http://www.techeye.net/mobiles-2/commodore-phone-in-trademark-war

-- eliyahu

it is either becoming a soap opera or mudslinging
 

Offline eliyahu

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Re: Commodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #58 on: August 17, 2015, 05:31:08 PM »
@OlafS3

it sure seems that way. at first i figured something wasn't quite right since i couldn't imagine paolo being involved with something that wasn't on the 'up and up,' but then we have his statement on AWN, cloanto's sudden insertion into the whole thing, and... i don't know what to think.

if nothing else it shows that there are folks who feel the AROS kickstart replacement ROMs are solid enough for commercial purposes. that's a good sign, at least. :)

-- eliyahu
"How do you know I’m mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn’t have come here."
 

Offline OlafS3

Re: Commodore Business Machines live again !
« Reply #59 on: August 17, 2015, 05:35:24 PM »
Quote from: eliyahu;794079
@OlafS3

it sure seems that way. at first i figured something wasn't quite right since i couldn't imagine paolo being involved with something that wasn't on the 'up and up,' but then we have his statement on AWN, cloanto's sudden insertion into the whole thing, and... i don't know what to think.

if nothing else it shows that there are folks who feel the AROS kickstart replacement ROMs are solid enough for commercial purposes. that's a good sign, at least. :)

-- eliyahu

one benefit at last :) and free of copyright... I hate all those "closed" or "copyright" fuss