Patent reform could well be on its way. Last week the US House passed the “Innovation Act”, a bill that would make it harder to win overly broad patents and force claimants to present more detailed evidence when suing for infringement. That bill awaits the Senate. This week, it was revealed that former Google top […]
There are a massive number of Apple vs Samsung and Samsung vs Apple court cases going on in the world today, and more still having appeared in the recent past. What we’re seeing this week is a single South Korean case ending with Apple winning over Samsung, the Galaxy smartphone maker not able to prove […]
If you’re a hardcore gamer, you’ll already know that the real next-gen gaming revolution is virtual reality, spearheaded by the Oculus Rift. It seems that Apple has been taking notes, with a freshly-uncovered patent revealing sketches of a potential Apple-branded head-mounted display.
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Many in the tech world and Washington have railed against the encroaching and limiting effect of patents on innovation, but when the chips are down, IP and patents remain key cornerstones in how tech companies and their founders are making sure they will be able to build their businesses and stick around for the long haul. Tony Fadell, the legendary former hardware supremo at Apple and now CEO and co-founder of new smart home device startup Nest, today revealed that Nest already had 100 patents granted, with 200 more on file with the USPTO and another 200 ready to file.
“At Nest what we did was make sure that we are putting [effort in] a ton of patents,” he said on stage today at the LeWeb conference on Paris. “This is what you have to do to disrupt major revenue streams.”
Nest, which first hit the market last year with a smart, design-friendly thermostat that you can control remotely with an iPhone app, this year added to its range with a smart smoke and carbon monoxide detection and alarm system. But the company has also had its share of patent heat.
It has been embroiled in a thermostat-related patent infringement suit brought by appliance maker Honeywell initially in February 2012, and in November 2013 saw another patent suit get filed from BRK, makers of the First Alert smoke alarms, for infringements related to Nest’s second product.
Nest has also taken steps to buy insurance from elsewhere to shore up its patent position. In September it announced a deal with Intellectual Ventures — one of the most well-known of the patent hoarders — for access to some 40,000 patents via IV’s “IP for Defense” subscription-based product. Nest can draw on these patents as a defendant or in the event of a counterclaim — as it happens to be in the case of Honeywell.
Part of the IV deal also included the acquisition of an unspecified number of patents, “in areas of interest to Nest, including systems and methods for automatic registration of devices.” It is unclear whether Fadell’s patent citation today — totalling some 500 in all if you count granted patents, those waiting approval, and those yet to be filed — include the patents that Nest would have picked up from IV.
You might argue that part of Fadell’s bullishness about patents comes out of necessity because of these suits, but on the other hand you have to remember that he comes from Apple, one of the most aggressive technology companies when it comes to using patents to defend its products, and also filing a lot of them almost as a smokescreen to mask what it may be planning next.
Patents are not the only game in town, of course. In talking about what he saw as important elements of building a business, Fadell also touched on the challenges of hardware startups, and the pitfalls of Kickstarter. You can get a lot of public support (and even financial support) for an idea, but “if you do not plant the seeds early enough” for how you will manufacture and distribute that concept at scale, he said, you will not go anywhere. (Yes, he said this last year at LeWeb, too.)
The other area that Fadell believes we are seeing a shortfall is in how disruptive products are being marketed to consumers.
“You have to communicate what the problem is and what the benefit of the solution is,” as well as giving people an easy way to purchase it, he said. That is part of how you build trust for new, intelligent devices. “If people cannot trust our brand, our things will never sell,” said Fadell. “The ‘Internet of Things’ will never take off if people do not trust the products.”
Apple has been granted a patent by the US Patent and Trademark Office for a pair of portable media viewing goggles. The patent says they “may resemble ski or motorcycle goggles.” The device would likely allow for a 3D viewing experience reminiscent of that found in the Oculus Rift VR headset. The patent was filed […]
Patents celebrate the human spirit of innovation, and new patents are a constant source of inspiration. But sometimes you come across some patents that seem a little… evil. Here are nine real-life patents that will make you despair about the human race.
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Move over Samsung and LG: Apple has been awarded a patent by the US Patent and Trademark Office that describes how they could manufacture a new breed of curved touch surfaces.
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Earlier this year, Nokia sold the majority of its handset business to Microsoft, but held on to its roster of patents. Because of this, a European regulator has warned Nokia to avoid becoming a patent troll, something that has been an issue for companies in increasing numbers. The warning came from the European Commission’s head […]
The patent war between Samsung and Apple has been long and, to whatever extent possible, bloody, with both sides seeing some victories and defeat. Ultimately, Samsung has suffered some major financial blows, and now Apple wants to add upon that burden, filing a motion to have the Korean company take on some of its legal […]
Today the U.S. Navy announced that it successfully launched
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