Blocking Apple Devices

[thesysadmin]

Would it be illegal for me to block all Apple-Devices from using my Website (which provides encrypted online calendars and mail for free) and displaying a message that I do not wish to support Apple and it's products? Nothing too fancy, just blocking the Apple useragents.

I want to do this because Apple recently (I suppose intentionally) broke the functionality of their calendar concerning third party online calendar support, and my users currently can only access their calendars by the web interface.

Site hosted in UK/England, but I'm a german Citizen.

 

[quincy]

Would it be illegal for me to block all Apple-Devices from using my Website (which provides encrypted online calendars and mail for free) and displaying a message that I do not wish to support Apple and it's products? Nothing too fancy, just blocking the Apple useragents.

I want to do this because Apple recently (I suppose intentionally) broke the functionality of their calendar concerning third party online calendar support, and my users currently can only access their calendars by the web interface.

What is the name of your state or, if not in the US, what is the name of your country?

 

[quincy]

... Site hosted in UK/England, but I'm a german Citizen.

Thank you for adding in the country names to your original post.

You should check the laws that apply to you in Germany and to the laws that apply to your website in the U.K.

FreeAdvice addresses questions concerning U.S. laws only. Sorry.

 

[AgentSmithers]

Hi TheSysAdmin,
I agree with Quincy. However one thing that may be note worthy that if you redirect apple devices via the User-Agent attribute I would find it really really really hard to believe that there would be any legal action taken on behalf of anyone even apple for a move like that but always safe to check of course. The reason I say the User-Agent is that a huge amount of websites normally redirect products by detecting the user-agent all the time in the ordinary course of web browsing i.e. Mobile View, Detecting correct download to send to the end user.

 

[quincy]

Hi TheSysAdmin,
I agree with Quincy. However one thing that may be note worthy that if you redirect apple devices via the User-Agent attribute I would find it really really really hard to believe that there would be any legal action taken on behalf of anyone even apple for a move like that but always safe to check of course. The reason I say the User-Agent is that a huge amount of websites normally redirect products by detecting the user-agent all the time in the ordinary course of web browsing i.e. Mobile View, Detecting correct download to send to the end user.

Of course, laws vary between countries - sometimes in substantial ways - so any advice offered here means nothing to a resident of Germany with a U.K.-based website.