In short, we do not support YogaGlo's actions, or their reasoning. We believe that the patent application is frivolous, attempts to set a terrible precedent, and is not in alignment with the fundamental principles of yoga. We believe that everyone should have unfettered access to yoga. Our belief that yoga should be accessible to everyone is why we started YogaDownload in the first place, and it continues to be our guiding principle to this day.
We understand that in this age of booming technology, and at a time when more and more people are choosing to practice yoga, competition in the arena of online yoga instruction is bound to be fierce. We continually strive to offer a wide variety of high quality yoga videos, teachers, and styles as a means to stay competitive. At the end of the day, having so many choices for affordable, high quality online yoga instruction is a beautiful thing because more people doing yoga translates to a better world for all.
We are yoga students and teachers, not attorneys. Nonetheless, we do not view the class configuration and correlating camera position that YogaGlo is attempting to patent, as an invention. Teachers have been organizing their classes this way long before the advent of online yoga. This configuration is neither novel or unique, and we doubt that it has anything to do with YogaGlo's popularity or success
In Yoga International's official response to the Cease & Desist Order they said, "The value a teacher brings to her students is not from where they stand in the room, or the colors of the mats they provide, it is from the life they spent studying this thousands-year-old tradition. This needs no protection, because it cannot be copied."
We could not agree more.