July 2012

Lodsys Update

Submitted by patentadmin on Tue, 07/31/2012 - 15:21

From time to time, we like to check in on the Lodsys lawsuit - which, if you'll recall, was one of the most high-profile patent infringement suits filed in 2011. So what's new with Lodsys and the dozens of app developers and big tech companies it sued?

Disproving Prior Art Enablement Becomes Patent Applicant's Responsibility

Submitted by patentadmin on Mon, 07/30/2012 - 17:07

If your patent is in reexamination, be forewarned: It's up to you to prove that any relevant prior art isn't enabling or anticipatory of your patent claims.

Antor Media Corp. owns a patent (the ’961 patent) relating β€œto a method and apparatus for transmitting information recorded on digital disks from a central server to subscribers via a high data rate telecommunications network.” Antor sued several companies for patent infringement, resulting in a number of ex parte reexamination requests that were merged into a single reexamination.

Inc.com - "Best Way to Protect Your Brilliant Ideas"

Inc. magazine writer Jeff Haden interviewed Alexander Poltorak for an extensive article on protecting intellectual property, whether by trade secrets or patents. Dr. Poltorak discusses what inventors and business owners can do to enforce their IP - and when it's time to call in the experts. In the snippet below, he speaks about the doctrines of laches and estoppel and how they can derail patent enforcement efforts.

Judge Denies Apple's Request to Move Kodak Patent Lawsuit to Different Court

Submitted by patentadmin on Thu, 07/26/2012 - 23:53

July 26, 2012 - Apple's request to transfer its patent ownership dispute out of U.S. bankruptcy court and into a federal court was denied by U.S. District Judge George Daniels, because the bankruptcy court judge has not had a chance to address the motion himself.

Judge Daniels said in his ruling that Judge Allan Gropper of the bankruptcy court should have "an opportunity to render a decision on the motion and to have an opportunity to control and move forward the process."

RIM Ordered to Pay $147.2M in Patent Infringement Lawsuit

Submitted by patentadmin on Mon, 07/16/2012 - 00:36

July 15, 2012 - Research in Motion's financial problems were already fueling speculation about its future. Now more bad news has come RIM's way in the form of a $147.2 million jury verdict in a patent suit.

A jury in Northern California found that RIM infringed Mformation Technologies' patent on a remote management system for wireless devices.

TheStreet.com - "Reasons to Doubt Research In Motion's M&A Prospects"

Research in Motion may have just had its last annual meeting with shareholders, if the many dire predictions about its fate come true. Alexander Poltorak commented on what went wrong with a company whose shares are currently 95 percent lower than they were at their peak just four years ago. ("Reasons to Doubt Research In Motion's M&A Prospects" TheStreet.com - July 10, 2012)

Adding Insult to Victory

Submitted by patentadmin on Tue, 07/10/2012 - 23:44

Samsung won a patent infringement lawsuit this week in a UK court. However, the verdict was (basically) noninfringement due to a lack of coolness. Ouch!

Apple had sued Samsung in the UK, claiming that the Galaxy tablet PCs infringed the iPad's design. Judge Colin Birss ruled against Apple, because he found that Samsung's tablets "do not have the same understated and extreme simplicity which is possessed by the Apple design. They are not as cool."

Yahoo and Facebook Settle Patent Infringement Lawsuit, Expand Partnership

Submitted by patentadmin on Sun, 07/08/2012 - 19:01

July 8, 2012 - Facebook and Yahoo announced on July 6 that they ended their patent lawsuit and have agreed to cross-license their patent portfolios, with no money changing hands. The two companies are also forming an ad sales partnership in which Yahoo will be allowed to reach out to Facebook users by showing "Like" buttons in its ads.

IBTimes - "Apple Files Bond In Samsung Patent Case As Expert Sees Samsung Re-work To Defuse Suit"

As Samsung faces a temporary injunction on U.S. sales of its new Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet PC and Apple posted a $2.6 million bond to enforce that injunction, speculation is running high about what each side (and the judge) will do next. GPC's Alexander Poltorak was the IP expert consulted for an article examining Samsung's options in its ongoing patent war with Apple.