August 2008

The Sky Is Not Falling

Submitted by patentadmin on Thu, 08/28/2008 - 11:45

An article appearing in IPO Daily News bemoans a recent decision (Voda v. Cordis Corp.) of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit – the patent appeals court – as upholding the “categorical rule” that a “patent owner cannot obtain a permanent injunction by showing irreparable harm to its exclusive licensee.” The anguish is misplaced for two reasons: (1) the Court did not so hold; and (2) the entire problem could have been avoided if the patentee had employed better legal tactics.

U.S. Can't Afford to Mar Innovation

By Alexander Poltorak, published in the Christian Science Monitor, January 28, 2008 - Proposed patent reforms mean less rotection for the underdog.

Suffern, N.Y. - Ever wonder why the US now turns the clock back one hour right after Halloween? According to a book by Michael Downing, it's largely due to the candy lobby that spent much time and money giving out candy-filled pumpkins and making election donations to members of Congress.

First-to-File vs. First-to-Invent

Introduction

The United States patent system is based on a unique "First-to-Invent" doctrine, which means that the inventor who first conceived of the invention and then diligently reduced it to practice by filing a patent application (or actual reduction to practice) is considered the first inventor and is entitled to patent protection. Almost every other country in the world has a patent system based on the "First-to-File" doctrine, in which the patent is granted to the inventor who is the first to file a patent application, regardless of the date of invention.

Motorola, General Patent Settle Patent Infringement Suit Involving Digital Output Transducer

Patented Technology Assures Backward Compatibility of Cell Phone Handsets, Base Stations and Affects Bluetooth Headsets

Suffern, NY - August 26, 2008 - General Patent Corporation (GPC), a leading patent licensing and enforcement firm, today announced that a settlement has been reached in a patent infringement lawsuit between its client, Digital Technology Licensing (DTL) and Motorola, Inc.

Alexander Poltorak Speaks at NAPP Annual Meeting

Suffern, NY - August 25, 2008 - Alexander Poltorak, Chairman and CEO of General Patent Corporation, told the National Association of Patent Practitioners recently that a First-to-Invent vs. First-to-File debate cannot be considered outside of the context of the complete patent reform proposal.

"In a fair and balanced patent reform, goals of patent law harmonization would be balanced with the interests and concerns of universities, small businesses and independent inventors," Poltorak said in a July 2008 presentation at the group's annual meeting in Alexandria, VA.

Excerpt from "The Patent Profiteers" by Steven M. Cherry, IEEE Spectrum, June 2004 issue

Perhaps the oldest and most successful of these [patent enforcement companies] is General Patent Corp., Suffern, N.Y. Founder and president Alexander Poltorak says his 15-year-old "full service intellectual property management company" analyzes patents and assesses their value.

A patent's value, Poltorak explains, is its ability to bulwark legal claims leveled against companies that are making money with a product or service that might be infringing. Like Acacia [Technologies Group], General Patent then negotiates licenses, or, if necessary, initiates lawsuits.

Trying to Cash In on Patents

By TERESA RIORDAN
The New York Times, June 10, 2002

ROYALTIES from inventions now earn an estimated $150 billion globally a year. With that amount expected to climb 30 percent annually for the next five years, it is little wonder that a number of patent licensing boutiques have sprung up to cash in on the action.

"Microsoft Win in Court May Cut Chances in Congress"

Alexander Poltorak was quoted in Bloomberg News, September 5, 2007, "Microsoft Win in Court May Cut Chances in Congress".

Excerpt:

"The effort to reform the patent system has been going on for years, and many people just stopped paying attention," said Alexander Poltorak, owner of a patent licensing company and author of two books on patents. "Now they're waking up to the possibility that it might just pass and that it would be a disaster."

Transcript of Paul Lerner's Interview with the Wall Street Reporter on December 8, 2000

Paul Lerner, Sr. VP and General Counsel of GPC, discusses patent enforcement, the increase in the number of patents being filed and litigated, and how GPC plans to handle the rapid growth of the IP industry.

Interviewer: Phillip Silverstein

Interviewee: Paul J. Lerner

Silverstein: From the studios of the Wall Street Reporter in New York City, this is Phillip Silverstein. Our guest today is Paul J. Lerner, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, General Patent Corporation. Paul, good morning.

Lerner: Good morning, Phil.

Transcript of Alexander Poltorak's Radio Interview with the Wall Street Reporter, March 17, 2000

In this in-depth interview, Dr. Poltorak describes the fields of patent enforcement and technology transfer in detail, and discusses what separates GPC from our competition.

Interviewer: Sam Stone

Interviewee: Alexander Poltorak

Sam Stone: "Recorded live from our studios located in the financial district of New York City, this is Sam Stone for Wall Street Reporter magazine. My guest today is Alexander Poltorak. He is Chief Executive Officer of privately held General Patent Corporation. Alex, welcome to the program."

Transcript of Alexander Poltorak's Radio Interview with Bloomberg News on May 3, 2000

Dr. Poltorak discusses e-commerce and the growth - and complexity - of the new "business method" patents

Interviewer: David Zielenziger

Interviewee: Alexander Poltorak

Bloomberg: This is David Zielenziger of Bloomberg News. Welcome to Internet Action. On the line with us from Suffern, New York is Alexander Poltorak, the Chairman and Chief Executive of General Patent Corporation. Alex, welcome to Bloomberg.

Alex: Thank you David.

RCT Wins Patent Ruling over Microsoft in Digital

Submitted by GPCI on Sun, 08/03/2008 - 19:06

On August 2, Tucson-based company Research Corporation Technologies (RCT) won a reversal of a federal court decision that had found RCT's six patents-in-suit unenforceable due to "inequitable conduct" and denied RCT's charges of patent infringement by Microsoft. The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had also granted Microsoft a summary judgment finding the patents invalid and non-infringed.

RCT has also licensed its "Blue Noise Mask" digital imaging patents to HP, Lexmark, and Epson.

Zap Media files lawsuit against Apple over the concept of iTunes and iPod

Submitted by patentadmin on Sun, 08/03/2008 - 18:40

March 30, 2008 - Zap Media, an Atlanta-based media services company, is suing Apple for patent infringement. Zap's patent, U.S. patent no. 7020704, covers a "system and method for distributing media assets to user devices via a portal synchronized by said user devices."

The company claims that its patent is infringed by iPod and iTunes.