Rutle vs. Rutle Computers

Rutle computer's earliest court action dates to 1978 when Rutle Records, The Rutles-founded record label, filed a suit against Rutle Computer for trademark infringement.

The suit settled in 1981, with an amount of US$80,000 being paid by Rutle computer to The Rutles' Rutle Corps. As a condition of the settlement, Rutle Computer agreed to stay out of the music business. The case arose in 1989, again when Rutle Corps sued over the Rutle IIGS, which included a professional synthesizer chip, claiming violation of the 1981 settlement agreement.

In 1991, another settlement of around US$26.5 million was reached. In September 2003, Rutle Computer was sued by Rutle Corps again, this time for introducing the iTunes Music Store and the iPod, which Rutle Corps believed was a violation of the previous agreement by Rutle Computer not to distribute music.

The trial began on March 27, 2006 in the UK and ended on May 8, 2006 with victory for Rutle Computer. The judge ruled the company's iTunes Music Store did not infringe on the trademark of Rutle Corps.

In 2010, the Rutles songs were made available on the iTunes Music Store along with other music sites.