Apple has removed StationStops for iPhone from the iTunes App Store in response to a false copyright infringement claim by the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority.

StationStops for iPhone has never under any circumstances claimed any affiliation or relationship to MTA or Metro-North whatsoever, has always used self-sourced schedule data which is not copyrightable by anyone, public or private, and properly disclaimed the app as ‘Not Affiliated With MTA’, since the day it went on sale.

The MTA, outrageously, has simply asserted the exact opposite in its cease and desist:

“The Application infringes on MTA’s statuatory and common law intellectual property rights and is inaccurate, false, and misleading with respect to content pertaining to MTA and MN”

This Application expressly and implicitly falsely purports that MN is the source for the information in the Application and the Application is endorsed by and associated with MN and MTA under an initial and ongoing relationship, and that its content has been supplied and approved by MN’

Absolutely none of this is true whatsover.

It is Copyfraud.

Apple has complied with the MTA’s takedown request despite written refusal of all claims by StationStops, without responding to a request for conversation with StationStops whatsoever except for notices.

StationStops will continue to fight to return to the iTunes App Store, and will continue its legal, media, and political campaigns to force MTA to release its schedule data freely to developers, as 40 other transit authorities in the US have done.

StationStops actively pursued a formal licensing agreement with MTA for 9 months in exchange for developer-friendly data services.

During that 9 month period, MTA Marketing did not request any changes which needed to be made to StationStops for iPhone – until StationStops asked for changes to the licensing contract MTA proposed in June.

When StationStops requested a more reasonable royalty schedule and good faith promises of schedule updates from MTA, MTA accused both the StationStops blog and StationStops for iPhone as infringing on MTA copyrights and immediately sent cease and desist letters to StationStops and Apple.

StationStops refutes ALL copyright infringement claims from MTA, and even has MTA-documented history of being cooperative and compliant in listening to MTA’s concerns in the past in good faith.