March 9, 2000: That Looks a Little too Familiar

The original iMac sold a ton of machines. Wanting to get in on the good stuff, other manufacturers began imitating the iMac's for the time, radically fresh design. Of course, the imitators' machines couldn't run Mac OS or run Mac-only programs so the manufacturers kept the aping of the iMac concerned with industrial design only.

Imitation might be the sincerest form of flattery but, in this case, it was also a great way to get Apple's legal department moving. Apple objected to the naked copying of the iMac's design and set out to stop it via the United States legal system. Suits were filed against three of the larger transgressors: Future Power, eMachines and Sotec.

The legal maneuverings, and subsequent setbacks for the three companies, provided enough incentive to the companies involved to cease their production of PCs featuring design derived from iMac. Apple announced that all three companies would cease selling the iMac-a-likes on March 9. 2000.