Dear Apple: Please Stop Suing Bankrupt Companies

We're starting to think that Apple is nothing but a big, rich bully.

We're starting to think that Apple is nothing but a big, rich bully. Late Thursday afternoon, a judge ruled that Apple would have to put its litigation suit against Eastman Kodak on hold while the film company sifted through its so far fairly depressing bankruptcy paperwork. "The disputed patent concerns a digital camera that can preview images on an LCD screen," explains The Wall Street Journal's Joseph Checkler in his coverage of the affair. "Apple said in court papers that Kodak 'misappropriated' its technology to get the patent; Kodak said Apple's ownership claim is 'baseless.'"

In the near term, Apple is seeking damages (read: money) that they say they're owed due to an alleged misuse of their patent. Sounds pretty brutal, huh? There is a more reasonable motivation behind Apple's apparent bullying. In the longer term, Apple fears that technology "might be sold during Kodak's bankruptcy before an ownership dispute is resolved," writes Checkler -- you can only imagine how upset Tim Cook and company would be if Google got ahold of a patent they had rights to.

We're still having a hard time getting past the bullying bit, though. It's one thing when another company steals your ideas in order to make massive profits and potentially put you out of business. But when you're the world's most valuable company and decide to pursue a lawsuit against a non-competitor who's just filed for bankruptcy, that's just mean. Play nice, Apple.