Apple patented by Microsoft
Grok Headline matches for Apple patented by Microsoft
Apple really patented by Microsoft?
Apple really patented by Microsoft?
05/04/2004 07:49 PMglobetechnology.com May 4 2004 10:50PM GMT
Apple patented by Microsoft | CNET
News.com
Apple patented by Microsoft | CNET
News.com
05/05/2004 04:04 AMMicrosoft has patented
Apple
news.com.com/2100-1008_3-5205574.html
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Microsoft, Apple Sued For Patented
Online Updates
Microsoft, Apple Sued For Patented
Online Updates
07/21/2004 10:54 AMLast month, a company named BTG announced that they held the
"worldwide licensing rights" for a patent on automatic updates over
the internet -- and (of course) they
expected everyone to pay up, including Microsoft. Well, it
appears that the Microsoft lawyers laughed them out of the room, so
now BTG has been forced to
sue both Microsoft and Apple for violating
patent 6,557,054 on "A method and
system for distributing updates by presenting directory of software
available for user installation that is not already installed on user
station." And people still think our patent system works great? The
patent was applied for in April of 2000. There must be a ridiculous
amount of prior art of applications that updated themselves prior to
that.
Microsoft patented tasks grouping
Microsoft patented tasks grouping
07/01/2004 11:51 PMDouble handheld click patented by
Microsoft
Double handheld click patented by
Microsoft
06/07/2004 05:59 AMZDNet UK Jun 7 2004 10:31AM GMT
Microsoft Sticks By Apple As Rumors of
Apple Productivity Suite Spread
Microsoft Sticks By Apple As Rumors of
Apple Productivity Suite Spread
01/05/2005 04:17 PMHeading into Macworld, rumors of a new productivity suite from Apple
that might compete with Microsoft Office have made been making the
rounds. Microsoft, however, is sticking by Apple, according to a
statement from the company's Mac Business Unit published by CNet News.
Has HP Patented Refilling Ink?
Has HP Patented Refilling Ink?
03/28/2005 06:33 PMIn a case that sounds somewhat reminiscent of
Lexma
rk's (failed) attempts to use intellectual property law to block
the competition, HP has decided to
sue two companies
that offer refilled ink cartridges for their printers. The ink
business, of course, is big business -- with ink costing
more
than vintage champagne or
high
end perfume (depending on whose study you want to read). HP
claims that they have nothing against customers choosing to buy
refilled cartridges, but they have problems with these two refilling
companies. The first one is accused of patent violations, which seems
like an odd issue. The details (buried all the way at the end of the
article) say the patents are about the type of ink -- which seems
bizarre. Even more bizarre is that HP seems to make it very clear in
the filing that if the three patents they've picked out don't stick,
they have another 9,000 to choose from (which sounds eerily like IBM's
patent attack
on Sun years ago: "OK, maybe you don't infringe these seven
patents. But we have 10,000 U.S. patents. Do you really want us to go
back to Armonk and find seven patents you do infringe? Or do you want
to make this easy and just pay us $20 million?"). The other claim
makes a bit more sense, as HP says the second firm is packaging the
refilled cartridges as if they were new -- which could lead to
consumer confusion. Still, these lawsuits do seem like a simple
attempt to scare off certain ink refillers.
What if the alphabet was patented?
What if the alphabet was patented?
04/01/2005 10:39 PMCNET Asia Apr 2 2005 2:13AM GMT
Patents are obviously patented
Patents are obviously patented
02/10/2004 02:55 AMIn a surprise move, the US Patent Office has granted
a patent
which patents the patent office itself!
Hehe. Actually, the patent is meant to patent the concept of
"digital ownership", i.e. the idea that you can
"own" things in online multiplayer games. The patent is
just so broad that it covers pretty much any database, including the
patent database.
This is another example on how the USPTO has just thrown its hands up
in the air and basically says "accept them all and let courts
sort them out." This is an example on so many countless things
that have gone wrong with the system I can't even be bothered to
enumerate them anymore... Let me just begin with the notion that the
idea of ownership could be patented at all, and end up with how big
companies can use this to trounce upon the smaller ones, and you can
imagine the rant between those yourself.
Samsung's 2 Technologies Patented
Samsung's 2 Technologies Patented
04/27/2004 06:10 AMHankooki Apr 27 2004 9:09AM GMT
Now It Turns Out That Burning CDs Is
Patented As Well
Now It Turns Out That Burning CDs Is
Patented As Well
12/15/2003 09:21 PMBecause the day just isn't complete unless another silly patent
lawsuit is filed, Optima Technology now believes that
they
own a patent on CD-burning and are suing Roxio for refusing to
license their patent. This fits in with plenty of other patent
lawsuits that have been showing up recently which clearly demonstrate
just how off-course our patent system has become. The purpose of a
patent is to protect and encourage innovation. The idea behind
CD-burning is not innovative, and Roxio didn't come along and steal
the idea from Optima. There are simply too many cases these days of
some company sitting on a patent until someone else discovers the same
thing and then suing them. How that "encourages" innovation is beyond
me. Meanwhile, Optima says they basically plan to sue anyone who has
anything to do with CD burning unless they all come running to license
the patent.
Regifting Not Just A Seinfeld Gag --
It's Patented
Regifting Not Just A Seinfeld Gag --
It's Patented
12/08/2003 09:28 PMtrademarked, patented shrubbery
trademarked, patented shrubbery
05/23/2004 12:19 PMAs I'm planting my front yard, I'm doing a lot of research on
various plants and trees. One tree that caught my eye for one spot is
this Ri
ver Birch. But the wacky thing about it is that the name is a
registered trademark and it also carries this warning "Propagation of
this plant is prohibited due to patent protection."
Patented garden plants? I suddenly had visions of a sci-fi future
where Johnny Appleseed works for Monsanto, and you're not allowed to
eat the apples or graft new trees since it's all copyrighted,
patented, and trademarked up the wazoo.
I think I'll get a different tree for that spot.
Stopping Spam Patented (Again)
Stopping Spam Patented (Again)
06/02/2004 10:10 AMEarlier this year, we noted that Postini had
receive
d a patent for the incredibly obvious concept of anti-spam
filtering. Well, it looks like they may be in for some competition,
because Network Associates/McAfee has now been awarded a patent for an
idea that (sarcasm alert) no one could have possibly come up with
prior to December 2002 when they applied for it:
us
ing a combination of methods such as "filters, paragraph
hashing, and Bayes rules" to stop spam. What this really means is
that there are now going to be anti-spam patent battles which will
slow down the process of stopping spam, and do no one any good,
other than a few lawyers who will get rich. Why can't these companies
just compete in the marketplace? Still, it would be great if, at some
point, AT&T finally made it clear
why
they patented spamming itself last year.
'Matrix' idea patented by Sony
'Matrix' idea patented by Sony
04/07/2005 10:40 AMSony has patented an idea for transmitting data directly into the
brain, with the goal of enabling a person to see movies and play video
games in which they smell, taste and perhaps even feel things, it was
reported today.
The patent - based only on a theory, not on any invention - marks the
first step towards a "real-life Matrix", New Scientist says. In the
sci-fi film of that name, cyber-reality is projected into the brains
of people via an electrode feed at the back of their necks.
In Sony's patent, the technique would be entirely non-invasive - it
would not use brain implants or other surgery to manipulate the brain.
The patent has few details, describing only a device that would fire
pulses of ultrasound at the head to modify the firing patterns of
neurons in targeted parts of the brain. Sony Electronics spokeswoman
Elizabeth Boukis said the work was a "prophetic invention" and no
experiments at all had been done on it.
Star Trek Communicator: Patented
Star Trek Communicator: Patented
07/07/2004 06:04 PMXybernaut, the grandfather of well-hyped "wearable computing" that
perpetually seems to have problems actually selling products has now
announced
two
wearable computing patents, both of which seem pretty
questionable. The first is for an "ergonomic display," which
apparently is a display unit that includes rubber handgrips with
"tactile ridges." The second, though, is for a "personal
communicator" system, that "combines the functionality of a cell phone
(or mobile phone), a body supported computer and a pager." Star Trek
may want to claim prior art, but Xybernaut claims this is a bit
different from previous wearable patents in that this version includes
"detachable" parts. Who knew that by making something detachable, it
was suddenly patentable? Maybe King Missile should claim
prior art...
Automatic Software Downloading Now
Patented
Automatic Software Downloading Now
Patented
06/15/2004 11:49 AMThe latest in a long line of patent hoarding companies to come out of
nowhere with a patent for something obvious to threaten lots of
companies is British Technology Group. They're now waving around a
a patent for automatic software downloads for things like
anti-virus updates and are threatening a number of companies,
including Microsoft, if they don't pay up. First off, there must be
some prior art on this. Automatic software downloads are hardly a
"new" technology. It would also be interesting to hear how this is
possibly "non-obvious" considering that tons of companies offer this
feature on their software, and its unlikely that most of them did so
because they dug up some obscure patent and "stole" the idea.
Instead, they just implemented a perfectly obvious idea to improve
their own software. Now, thanks to the patent hoarding process, just
about any software product that needs regular automatic updates will
be more expensive, or won't work properly. This is innovation?
Philips 3-D Display Uses Patented Lens
Technology
Philips 3-D Display Uses Patented Lens
Technology
05/20/2004 07:00 PMOffering Internet In Public Places:
Patented
Offering Internet In Public Places:
Patented
09/21/2004 12:29 PMJust as more people are finally realizing the potential for a
"pate
nt apocalypse" if our patent system isn't fixed soon, we have yet
another example of idiotic patents getting in the way of actual
business. Wayport, the company that has offered both wired and
wireless internet access in hotels, airports and random other places
(such as McDonald's) for years has now been hit with a patent lawsuit
from a tiny company in New Hampshire, called PowerOasis, that claims
they've just
received a patent on offering
internet access in public places -- because, obviously, no one had
ever thought of that idea before this company came along and
patented it. Exactly which patents they're suing over isn't entirely
clear. The company claims 2 patents in the space, but a search of the
USPTO finds 3 patents in the company's name, all for a "Power and
telecommunications access vending machine." No matter which patents
are the ones they're suing over, the company's statements help
demonstrate how bad our patent system has become: "Wayport has
deprived PowerOasis of the ability to sell and expand its services in
airports and other locations, including hotels, to an extent that
cannot be calculated but that has severely hampered PowerOasis in its
effort to expand its businesses." Read that a second time.
Basically, PowerOasis is admitting that Wayport has a better sales and
marketing force. No one at Wayport
deprived PowerOasis of
anything. They just beat them in the market. Too many patent holders
these days seem to think that a patent (no matter how ridiculous it
may be) entitles them to simply have the market, rather than still
having to go out and win the market with a good product, backed up by
a good sales and marketing team.
Wireless Management Of A Computer
System: Patented
Wireless Management Of A Computer
System: Patented
09/03/2004 02:40 PM
The patent system is just getting out of control. The latest is that
a company named Expand Beyond has
paten
ted a system for wireless monitoring and management of computer
systems. The patent (
6,772,169) sounds incredibly broad,
covering any systems where someone is using a portable device with a
wireless connection to monitor computer systems. Why is this
patentable? The big difference here is the "wireless" aspect -- which
isn't a new technology. All they're doing is taking something that
existed over a wired network before and making it wireless. To say
that's "non-obvious" (as a patent must be) is a joke.
AirIQ and Aircept Promote Key Patented
Technology
AirIQ and Aircept Promote Key Patented
Technology
08/18/2004 06:39 AMStockhouse Canada Aug 18 2004 11:29AM GMT
Big Intrusions, Tiny Pictures and
Patented Problems
Big Intrusions, Tiny Pictures and
Patented Problems
12/28/2003 11:43 PMUsers of Microsoft Windows found themselves in the bull's-eye -- years
of inattention to security issues in Redmond, Wash., left them exposed
to the Blaster worm, the Sobig virus, Messenger Service pop-ups,
spyware infestations and worse, while Mac and Linux users missed out
on all the "fun."
Monsanto Wins Case Over Patented Canola
Monsanto Wins Case Over Patented Canola
05/21/2004 03:47 PMSony's patented method to make the
Matrix
Sony's patented method to make the
Matrix
04/07/2005 12:49 PMDavid Pescovitz:
Apparently, Sony has received a patent on a purely theoretical method
for transmitting sensory experiences directly into the brain. Their
approach would non-invasively fire ultrasound pulses at various parts
of the brain. Details are sparse as the inventor declined interview
requests from New Scientist.
Elizabeth Boukis, spokeswoman for Sony Electronics, says
the work is speculative. "There were not any experiments done," she
says. "This particular patent was a prophetic invention. It was based
on an inspiration that this may someday be the direction that
technology will take us."
Link to article and Link to
patent
Contextual Advertising In Email May Be
Patented - And Not By Google
Contextual Advertising In Email May Be
Patented - And Not By Google
05/19/2004 07:17 PMHere we go again with more pointless patent battles that will do more
to hold back, rather than encourage, innovation. While Google has
made the big publicity splash (with both good and bad publicity)
concerning their Gmail offering that puts contextual text ads
alongside email based on the contents of the email,
anothe
r company applied for a patent on a similar idea well before
Google applied for their own patent. Now, there's almost certain to
be some sort of patent battle concerning this type of offering, which
will do little (if anything) to help ensure better solutions reach the
public. Instead, it will just tie up lawyers in a long term battle
that will pay off handsomely for lawyers - but only delay innovation
for end users. Besides, I still wonder how such an idea is
patentable? It's not as if it wasn't obvious. Hell, even
I
came up with the idea before Google announced their product - and
if I could think it up, it's pretty hard to say that it's
"non-obvious."
Patented Signal Handoff Hype, Promise
Patented Signal Handoff Hype, Promise
04/16/2005 06:42 PM
UCSD did a great job getting into the media this week with
a fast Wi-Fi handoff technology: SyncScan drops
a Wi-Fi adapter or appliance, like a VoWLAN phone, out of its
associated mode for a few milliseconds at a regular, defined interval
to check on signal strength. This avoids adapters swapping to a new AP
only when signal strength becomes unusable or nearly so.
SyncScan relies on a feature in Atheros's chipsets that's available
from the open-source madwifi drivers; it's the same sort of feature
(if not the identical one) that allows Atheros's WLAN switch partners
to offer RF monitoring on the same APs that are also handling client
data interchange.
Two problems with SyncScan's approach: first, it requires firmware to
be installed on the access point, which is fine for experimentation
and open-source projects, but otherwise needs signoff from major
firmware developers and their manufacturing partners; second, it's got
that patent-pending label attached, which always has the caveat of
causing resistance until fees are revealed.
SyncScan puts all APs within listening range of each other into a
synchronized beaconing mode so that the "I'm alive" signals happen at
fixed intervals. This allows adapters to only listen at discrete
periods and to get a clear idea of precisely what's happening in the
local RF space. But this coordination adds overhead and there has to
be a cost to synchronization and the inevitable resynchronization.
One of the IEEE 802.11 groups, 802.11f, was dedicated to fast
reassociation through preauthentication--tokens exchanged among APs at
Layer 3--but that doesn't help with fast reassociation on an RF level,
or Layer 1.
Software Installation/Update via
Internet Patented
Software Installation/Update via
Internet Patented
11/02/2003 07:35 PMRKBA writes "My wife just handed me an article from the Wednesday,
October 22, 2003 issue of the Wall Street Journal about a tiny Austin,
TX company called ...
Microsoft Blog: Apple and Microsoft: an
insider's perspective
Microsoft Blog: Apple and Microsoft: an
insider's perspective
12/02/2003 01:28 PMInteresting quotes from Steves Capps and Balmer about products and
schedules.
Philips 3-D Display Uses Patented Lens
Technology And New Software
Philips 3-D Display Uses Patented Lens
Technology And New Software
05/20/2004 07:17 AMSpace Daily May 20 2004 10:38AM GMT
Microsoft Notebook: Microsoft has plans
to take on ... Apple
Microsoft Notebook: Microsoft has plans
to take on ... Apple
01/05/2004 03:37 AMMicrosoft Notebook: Microsoft has plans
to take on ... Apple?
Microsoft Notebook: Microsoft has plans
to take on ... Apple?
01/05/2004 02:30 AMApple Computer CEO Steve Jobs was asked during a November meeting with
analysts whether the company would ever make its iPod music player
work directly with something other than its iTunes Music Store. There
was a noticeable sense of accomplishment in his voice when he
answered. First he pointed out the dominant market position achieved
by the iPod. Then he noted that the iTunes store had just captured
more than 80 percent of the market for legally downloaded music.
Unaxis Optics Announces Licensing of Its
Patented ColorWheels™ Technology
Unaxis Optics Announces Licensing of Its
Patented ColorWheels™ Technology
06/06/2005 12:02 AMUnaxis Optics, the world-wide leading manufacturer of ColorWheels™,
has entered into a licensing agreement with a major Taiwanese optical
manufacturing company for the exploitation of its patented ColorWheel™
technology for DLP™ based projection display applications. [PRWEB Jun
2, 2005]
Hello! Mr. CEO/M.D/Director, carring
India's no 1 patented Visiting Card
Scanner with you?
Hello! Mr. CEO/M.D/Director, carring
India's no 1 patented Visiting Card
Scanner with you?
06/01/2004 09:15 AMSimply and efficiently scan and organize your business cards. [PRWEB
May 31, 2004]
Flooding File Sharing Networks With
Bogus Files: Patented
Flooding File Sharing Networks With
Bogus Files: Patented
05/05/2004 05:10 PMWell, here's a nice convergence story covering two topics we discuss
on a regular basis: file sharing and ridiculous patents. A computer
science professor has now
received a patent on the process of flooding a file sharing
network with bogus files to annoy people trying to download files.
How is this not obvious? It didn't take a professor and a doctoral
student to come up with this idea. Plenty of folks in the industry
just went ahead and did it themselves. The professor also makes the
same tired old mistake of saying that file sharing is the same thing
as stealing a CD out of a store - something that even the Supreme
Court has
said is
not true. Copyright infringement is definitely illegal, but it's
not the same thing as stealing a physical object. Of course, some may
say that this will make it more expensive for others to flood such P2P
networks with fake files (and therefore a good thing), but relying on
a bad patent isn't the way to go. I wonder if this patent covers
flooding the patent office with bogus patents as well?
SLS Loudspeakers Acquires Evenstar Inc.;
Patented Digital Amplification
Technology Provides Cost Savings In Ma
SLS Loudspeakers Acquires Evenstar Inc.;
Patented Digital Amplification
Technology Provides Cost Savings In Ma
05/13/2004 10:41 PMWide Screen Review May 14 2004 3:01AM GMT
Duquesa Marketing, Inc. Hired to Launch
Patented Satellite Dish Accessory
Products
Duquesa Marketing, Inc. Hired to Launch
Patented Satellite Dish Accessory
Products
03/30/2005 03:20 AMDuquesa Marketing, Inc. is a marketing and small business funding
consultant consortium. The Company works extensively with small
companies, entrepreneurs and inventors to create product development,
sales channels, funding and licensing opportunities. Roof Top Patriot
has developed two patent pending accessory items for use on millions
of satellite receiver dishes seen on rooftops all over the world.
[PRWEB Mar 30, 2005]
Calypso Wireless' New Patented
Technology Could Impact Internet Service
Providers' Revenues and Deliver New Se
Calypso Wireless' New Patented
Technology Could Impact Internet Service
Providers' Revenues and Deliver New Se
05/24/2004 08:15 PMLinux Electrons May 24 2004 11:45PM GMT
Solomon Announces Engagement of Design
Continuum to Leverage Patented and
Proprietary Electric Propulsion Tech
Solomon Announces Engagement of Design
Continuum to Leverage Patented and
Proprietary Electric Propulsion Tech
03/30/2005 01:06 PMMotion Control Mar 30 2005 5:31PM GMT
ExactPower EP15A Offers A Full-Spectrum
Solution To Audio And Video Power
Problems; Patented Technology Suppli
ExactPower EP15A Offers A Full-Spectrum
Solution To Audio And Video Power
Problems; Patented Technology Suppli
07/12/2004 08:57 PMWide Screen Review Jul 13 2004 0:47AM GMT
Grok Description matches for Apple patented by Microsoft
GrokA matches for Apple patented by Microsoft
Apple patented by Microsoft
