Hasta La Gadget!

Avid watchers of tech know that Apple is almost as good at requesting patents (though, its record of defending them is somewhat less impressive) as it is at actually creating compelling products. Three years after initially filing for the design of a “portable multifunction device” with a multitouch interface, the USPTO has awarded the Cupertino crew a rather broadly worded patent that’s sure to raise few eyebrows amongst its competitors. The language could easily be interpreted to cover practically any device with a multitouch screen, be it tablet or smartphone — which we’re sure Jobs and co. are excited to add to their growing stockpile of claims to gestures and capacitive displays. Whether or not Apple actually uses its recently granted patent to go lawsuit loony against its market rivals remains to be seen but, chances are, it’ll stay quiet for the time being — those battles with Sammy and Lodsys are already consuming plenty of precious resources.

Apple granted broad patent for ‘portable multifunction devices’ with multitouch screens originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Jun 2011 17:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Keeping track of all accusations flying back and forth in the ongoing patent brouhaha between Apple and Samsung? Then we’re afraid you’ll have to update your scorecards again, as Apple has now amended its complaint with some even stronger language than before, and broadened the scope of the devices involved in the suit. According to Apple, the Droid Charge, Infuse 4G, Nexus S 4G, Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy S II and a handful of other Samsung devices are all also infringing on the patents in question, which now total eight in all (two previously included have been thrown out, but three new ones have been added). As for that stronger language, Apple’s now saying that Samsung “has been even bolder” than other competitors in copying its products, and that it’s created “products that blatantly imitate the appearance of Apple’s products to capitalize on Apple’s success.” Hit the source link below for FOSS Patents’ complete breakdown of the amendment.

[Thanks, Fayez]

Apple expands patent complaint against Samsung to include more devices originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 17 Jun 2011 15:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There’s a new patent war brewing on both sides of the Atlantic, now that Dolby has filed a set of lawsuits against RIM. At issue is the audio compression technology RIM uses in its BlackBerry phones and PlayBook tablets. Dolby claims this intellectual property is protected under patents that several other smartphone makers have already licensed, and that RIM should be forced to do the same. The company’s lawsuits, filed yesterday in both the US and Germany, seek financial damages and an injunction that would stop all sales of allegedly infringing products. RIM declined to comment on the suit, but we’ll be sure to keep you posted as the battle unfolds. Head past the break for Dolby’s press release.

Continue reading Dolby sues RIM over alleged patent infringement, seeks injunction in 7.1 surround

Dolby sues RIM over alleged patent infringement, seeks injunction in 7.1 surround originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Indie developers turned to the Web hours after receiving warning letters from Lodsys last month, but larger devs took a more traditional approach, leaving the communication and finger-pointing to lawyers instead. Two such companies, the New York Times and OpinionLabs, came to light after filing suit against the patent troll yesterday, seeking declaratory judgements to invalidate Lodsys’s patents. A nine-page complaint filed by NYT lists four Lodsys patents, including 7,222,078, which had previously been used to target smaller developers. NYT’s ad click-through system and OpinionLabs’ surveys were both also targeted, and if the suits are successful, Lodsys would be responsible for all legal expenses, and wouldn’t be allowed to collect on its patents in the future.

We spoke with Julie Samuels of the EFF, who explained that filing for a declaratory judgment could theoretically enable NYT and OpinionLabs to have trials held in California and Illinois, where the declaratory judgments were filed, instead of the Eastern District of Texas — the notoriously plaintiff-friendly court where Lodsys filed its suit against seven devs on May 31st. Other devs who received letters but have not yet been sued can also do the same. The suits brought by NYT and OpinionLabs formally call the validity of Lodsys’s patents into question, but unfortunately don’t change the game for devs Lodsys already sued, who would still be responsible for licensing fees and other damages if the court determines the patents to be valid (and their apps to be infringing).

New York Times, OpinionLab sue Lodsys seeking declaratory judgement originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Jun 2011 13:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple files motion to intervene in Lodsys patent lawsuit originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Jun 2011 11:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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