Let’s All “P” on Steve Jobs

There’s been some justifiable outrage over Apple’s recent attempts to “protect” its iPod trademark by sending Cease & Desist letters to businesses using the term “podcast” — a term which Apple itself never thought to coin because it could never envision such a thing as podcasting.

The background story is covered in two articles:

Apple files for Podcasting trademark

EXCLUSIVE: Apple Trademark Office docs point to REAL reasons for “Podcast” controversy

Personally, I don’t think Apple has a case. It’s not Apple’s term to own. Apple didn’t create it nor did Apple ever forsee it.

There have been discussions about changing the name to a variety of things: bitcast, netcast, screencast, etc. Some of these terms have already been trademarked.

I propose a simpler solution: Drop the P. Call it an odcast, call it odcasting. It’s close enough to the entrenched term “podcast” for people to almost understand it on first hearing. And if they ask, “Don’t you mean podcast?” it can easily be explained that the P was dropped to suit Apple and to liberate the technology from being linked to one company in everyone’s minds.

Let’s not wind up wth podcasts, Zencasts, Sansacasts, Zunecasts.

One term can fit all: Odcast.