Google loads up on IP again, buys 1,000 more patents from IBM

Seems like we’ve heard this story before — Google buys a bunch of patents to protect its cute little green baby from all the big, bad patent lawsuits. Only this time, instead of buying a hardware manufacturer to expand its patent warchest, team Mountain View merely purchased 1,023 bits of IP from IBM. Covering everything from a method for filling holes in printed wiring boards to a method for file system management, Google seems to have grabbed quite the eclectic collection — one we’re sure Big G will put to work for itself and its buddies in no time. Those looking to see the full results of this latest patent shopping spree can hit the source link below.

Google loads up on IP again, buys 1,000 more patents from IBM originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Sep 2011 03:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple wants to press pause on patent suits, calls Motorola a lame duck

In what could turn out to be a very expensive lesson in minding one’s mouth, Apple plans to use Google’s and Motorola’s own words against them in court. Over the weekend, Cupertino’s lawyers filed two motions to stay in patent-related litigation with Moto, claiming the OEM’s pending merger renders its patent suits indefensible. According to Apple’s legal team, the proposed Motorola Mobility acquisition effectively transfers patent control over to Google, an allegation that public-facing statements from both companies seem to corroborate. Citing the potential waste of resources and probable reversal of future pre-merger settlements, the house that Jobs built is hoping to hold off on the court room fisticuffs until after the GoogMo consolidation is settled. With both cases set for far-off trial dates in April and August of 2012, it looks like all parties involved have plenty of time to sort this mess out, and then battle it out once again.

Apple wants to press pause on patent suits, calls Motorola a lame duck originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung files French patent complaint against Apple, targets iPhone, iPad

Samsung has retaliated against Apple once again — this time, in France, where the Korean manufacturer has filed a complaint alleging that Cupertino infringed upon a trio of its patents. Originally filed with a Paris district court in July and announced yesterday, the complaint claims that the UMTS technologies featured in the iPhone and 3G-enabled iPads violate three of Samsung’s patents. Unlike a previous case in Germany, which recently resulted in a nationwide injunction against the Galaxy Tab 10.1, this filing “focuses on three technology patents, and not on the design of the tablets,” as a Samsung spokesperson was quick to point out. Details on the patents in question remain blurry for the moment, but it’ll probably be a while before the case progresses anyway, with the first hearing scheduled for December.

Samsung files French patent complaint against Apple, targets iPhone, iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Sep 2011 07:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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German court upholds injunction against Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, Apple wins nationwide ban

A German court has weighed in on Apple’s seemingly interminable patent battle against Samsung, and it isn’t looking good for Galaxy Tab users. In a ruling issued today, a Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court upheld last month’s preliminary injunction, banning the sale of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 within Germany. Citing the slate’s “minimalist, modern form,” presiding judge Johanna Brueckner-Hoffmann determined that Samsung’s tablet bears a “clear impression of similarity” with the iPad 2, thereby meriting a nationwide ban. “The court is of the opinion that Apple’s minimalistic design isn’t the only technical solution to make a tablet computer,” Brueckner-Hoffmann explained, “other designs are possible.” Earlier this week, as you may recall, Apple won a separate injunction against the Galaxy Tab 7.7 in Düsseldorf, though Samsung can still appeal that decision in a lower court. The court stopped short, however, of calling for an EU-wide injunction against the 10.1-inch slate, arguing that “it could only be competent to order a Europe-wide ban for a firm headquartered outside the European Union if this firm has a German subsidiary.” Samsung, meanwhile, plans to appeal the ruling in a higher court, with a company spokesman issuing a now all-too familiar statement: “We are disappointed with this ruling and believe it severely limits consumer choice in Germany.”

German court upholds injunction against Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, Apple wins nationwide ban originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Sep 2011 07:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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US Senate passes patent system reform bill, Obama expected to sign into law

Think it’s time to change our patent system? So does Congress. Yesterday, the Senate approved the America Invents Act by an 89-8 vote that could bring about the most drastic changes to the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in five decades. Under the bill, which the House approved back in June, patents would be awarded not to the first person to invent a technology, but to the first one to actually file with the USPTO, bringing US policy in line with protocol adopted in most other countries. It also calls for a streamlined application process and would allow the USPTO to charge set fees for all apps. The revenue generated from these fees would go directly to a capped reserve fund, allowing the office to retain the lion’s share of the money, rather than funneling much of it to Congress, as had become the norm.

Supporters say this extra revenue will give the USPTO more power to chip away at its backlog of some 700,000 patent applications, while a new third-party challenge system will help eliminate patents that should’ve never received approval in the first place. Opponents, meanwhile, criticized the bill for not eliminating fee diversion altogether (an amendment that would’ve placed more severe restrictions was ultimately killed, for fear that it would jeopardize the bill’s passage), with Washington Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell questioning the legislation’s impact on small businesses, calling it “a big corporation patent giveaway that tramples on the rights of small inventors.” But Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat who sponsored the bill, argued that yesterday’s approval marks a major and historic inflection point in US patent policy:

The creativity that drives our economic engine has made America the global leader in invention and innovation. The America Invents Act will ensure that inventors large and small maintain the competitive edge that has put America at the pinnacle of global innovation. This is historic legislation. It is good policy.

The America Invents Act will now make its way to President Obama’s desk, where it’s expected to receive his signature. For more background on the legislation, check out the links below.

US Senate passes patent system reform bill, Obama expected to sign into law originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Sep 2011 03:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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US inventor finally granted patent for snowman construction

With all the patent lawsuit wars happening these days between pretty much every big-name tech company, including Microsoft, Apple, Samsung, HTC, (and the list goes on), you’d think the last thing we’d want to hear about today is another patent. However, this one happened to catch our eye. And, believe it or not, we’re talking […]

Microsoft adds Acer, ViewSonic to patent licensing list

You can go ahead and add Acer and ViewSonic to Microsoft’s long list of patent licensees. This morning, Redmond announced a pair of new licensing agreements with the two companies, just a few months after striking similar deals with Itronix and Velocity Micro. Details, however, are few and far between, with Microsoft saying only that it will receive royalties from ViewSonic and that the patents in question pertain to both companies’ Android tablets and smartphones. Of course they do. Both press releases await you, after the break.

Continue reading Microsoft adds Acer, ViewSonic to patent licensing list

Microsoft adds Acer, ViewSonic to patent licensing list originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Sep 2011 09:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple sues Samsung in Japan over alleged iPhone, iPad patent violations

It looks like Apple’s patent spat with Samsung has now reached the land of the rising sun. Reuters is reporting that Cupertino is taking the Korean manufacturer to court in Japan, over alleged patent violations pertaining to the iPhone and iPad. Japan’s Kyodo news agency first reported the news, citing unnamed insiders who claim that Apple is looking to halt sales of Samsung’s allegedly patent-infringing Galaxy S smartphones, while seeking ¥100 million (about $1.3 million) in damages. According to the sources, the first hearing was held in a Tokyo District Court on Wednesday, though a court spokesman would not comment on the pending case. Neither Samsung nor Apple have commented on the suit and details on the patents in question remain unclear, but we’ll keep you posted as we find out more.

Update: Ryuji Yamada, CEO of Japanese provider NTT DoCoMo, is now saying that Apple’s lawsuit will not have any effect on next month’s Galaxy Tab launch. “We have heard from Samsung that there will be no obstruction to sales,” Yamada confirmed.

Apple sues Samsung in Japan over alleged iPhone, iPad patent violations originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Sep 2011 03:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nike teases Back to the Future shoes, creepily leaks the contents of Marty McFly’s closet (video)




What’s this? Nike is rounding up shoe-nerds (and Back to the Future fans) to taunt them with futuristic metal shield glasses, 1980s candy, and a personal messages from Doc Brown? Could this shoe-filled YouTube tease (uploaded by DocEmmettBrown88) mean that Nike is bringing nerdom’s coolest kicks back from the future? Probably. After all, you don’t patent power-laces just to make a normal shoe, do you?

[Thanks, Rob]

Nike teases Back to the Future shoes, creepily leaks the contents of Marty McFly’s closet (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Sep 2011 00:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC sues Apple with help from formerly Google-owned patents

There’s a fresh new twist in the never ending Apple / HTC patent battle. The Taiwanese handset manufacturer is hitting back against Cupertino using newly obtained firepower: nine patents picked up from Google last week. The patents, which began life under Palm, Motorola and Openwave Systems, were transferred to HTC on September 1st. So much for the whole sitting down and not suing thing.

HTC sues Apple with help from formerly Google-owned patents originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Sep 2011 17:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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