Tensions have exploded between Air-O-Matic, Inc. and InfoMedia, Inc., two of the hottest names in iPhone flatulence. Air-O-Matic, maker of "Pull My Finger," has complained to Apple, threatened to sue its competitor over "iFart Mobile," and demanded monetary compensation, so InfoMedia is responding via the courts. At the center of this combustible situation? A trademark Air-O-Matic was awarded for the phrase "pull my finger."

Air-O-Matic's Pull My Finger and InfoMedia's iFart Mobile both quickly stank up the charts in Apple's App Store last December when the iPhone maker finally relented and opened up to such apps. Although iFart Mobile enjoyed a massive sales surge of over 100,000 copies in its first 14 days, iFart Mobile still maintains the number 11 spot in the App Store's Entertainment category.

Air-O-Matic complained to Apple and InfoMedia that its competitor was using unfair business practices, such as spamming Twitter users, gaming Google, and tooting its own horn with overtly glowing reviews on the iTunes Store. Air-O-Matic eventually demanded $50,000 after estimating its losses from InfoMedia's practices, then threatened to sue over InfoMedia's use of its silent-but-deadly ace in the hole: a trademark it filed for in December 2008 on the phrase "pull my finger" in relation to "computer application software for mobile phones."

InfoMedia used the phrase in promotional video titles and even its initial press release, though "pull my finger" linked to iFart Mobile. Air-O-Matic complained early on and InfoMedia agreed to change the press release's language "as a matter of good will." After tiring of the threats, InfoMedia has filed a lawsuit (PDF) in federal court.

Across eight pages that include descriptions of the origin of the "pull my finger" colloquialism, InfoMedia attempts to preempt an Air-O-Matic lawsuit by arguing that the phrase is common slang and not eligible for trademarking. To conclude, InfoMedia says that its use of the phrase—despite its goodwill change of language in its press release—qualifies as fair use. The company seeks a declaratory judgement that its use of "pull my finger" is lawful and does not infringe on any rights that Air-O-Matic might have. Naturally, it is also seeking attorney fees and other typical costs.

You may not believe it, but fart tools are among the largest categories of iPhone apps. In fact, outside of games—the most popular apps—fart apps may very well take the lead. A quick search for "fart" in the App Store produced well over 100 results. Other categories with high "me too" ratios pale by comparison, such as flashlight apps (50) and tip calculators (80), and while "bible" yields over 170 results, each of these categories contain quite a few false positives.

Whether or not InfoMedia is successful in nullifying Air-O-Matic's flatulent trademark or it eventually has to pay up, the situation highlights yet again a number of App Store growing pains that Apple has been slow to acknowledge and act upon. Developers have raised questions about Apple's App Store schizophrenia, and concerns over ambiguous censorship rules have not subsided since Apple opened the flood gates in December to apps that were previously rejected on various grounds of indecency or "duplicating existing functionality."

It should come as no surprise that the riffraff Apple finally allowed into its walled garden are raising quite the stink.