Oct
23
2010
23
2010
Is Zynga Trying To Patent Virtual Currency?
sarysa writes "Techcrunch spotted a recent patent application by Zynga, attempting to patent virtual currency purchased with real money for use in a gambling context. It is unlikely that the application will pass due to a plethora of prior art ...
Oct
22
2010
22
2010
Who Invented the Linux-Based Wireless Router?
mtaht writes "I've just had the interesting experience of being deposed to talk about one of the first embedded, Linux-based, wireless routers. Our (free!) 1998 publication of how to make one predates patent #7035281, filed September 13, 2000, by someone ...
Oct
08
2010
08
2010
Why Geim Never Patented Graphene
gbrumfiel writes "As we discussed on Tuesday, Andre Geim won this year's Nobel prize in physics for graphene, but he never patented it. In an interview with Nature News, he explains why: 'We considered patenting; we prepared a patent and ...
Oct
06
2010
06
2010
Facebook Patents Location Social Networking
bizwriter writes "Facebook just received a patent with broad claims that would seem to cover much of what Google (GOOG) Latitude, Foursquare, Gowalla, and others try to do in letting users share their locations with others. Patent number 7,809,805, called ...
Oct
04
2010
04
2010
Red Hat Settles Patent Case
darthcamaro writes "Red Hat has settled another patent case with patent holding firm Acacia. This time the patent is US Patent #6,163,776, 'System and method for exchanging data and commands between an object oriented system and relational system.' While it's ...
Oct
01
2010
01
2010
Strange bedfellows: EFF, Apache back Microsoft in patent dispute
Although building consensus position on patent reform proposals has proved difficult, practically every major stakeholder (except patent attorneys, of course) agrees that the US ...
Sep
30
2010
30
2010
Red Hat Urges USPTO To Deny Most Software Patents
Julie188 writes "The United States Patent and Trademark Office asked for public input on how it should use the Supreme Court's Bilski decision to guide it when granting new patents. Not surprisingly, Red Hat took them up on it. The ...
Sep
29
2010
29
2010
As USPTO evaluates Bilski, Red Hat says end software patents
When the Supreme Court heard the Bilski case earlier this year, it ruled that the specific business method patent at issue in the case ...
Sep
24
2010
24
2010
Most Software Patent Trolls Lose Lawsuits
An anonymous reader writes "A new study is out concerning patent trolls and software patents, which found the rather surprising news that the most litigated patents tend to lose nearly 90% of the time. When broken down into different categories, ...
Sep
23
2010
23
2010
Preliminary Finding Invalidates VoIP Patent
netbuzz writes "After a review, the US Patent Office has issued a preliminary finding that the Electronic Frontier Foundation calls 'an important first step in busting a patent that stifles innovation and the use of VoIP as a free speech ...
Sep
11
2010
11
2010
Patent Office Admits Truth — Things Are a Disaster
An anonymous reader writes "For years the US Patent and Trademark Office has published data to show how well it and the patent system were running. Under new leadership, the USPTO has begun to publish a dashboard of information, including ...
Sep
10
2010
10
2010
Oracle, NetApp Drop ZFS Patent Suit
An anonymous reader writes "It seems Oracle and NetApp have kissed and made up over the ZFS patent lawsuit. Before Oracle acquired Sun Microsystems, NetApp sued Sun claiming ZFS infringed on its patents. Sun later sued NetApp back. From today, ...
Aug
31
2010
31
2010
‘Free’ H.264 a Precursor To WebM Patent War?
webmink writes "The MPEG LA seem unwilling to explain why they have extended their 'free' H.264 streaming video policy now. This article unpacks the history of MPEG LA and then suggests the obvious — it's all because of WebM — ...
Aug
26
2010
26
2010
MPEG LA counters Google WebM with permanent royalty moratorium
The MPEG Licensing Association—the group responsible for handling the necessary patent licensing for use of MPEG video codec standards—has announced that it will not ...
Aug
24
2010
24
2010
Lexmark Sues 24 Companies Over Toner-Cartridge Patents
eldavojohn writes "Remember back in 2003, when Lexmark tried to use the DMCA to stop after market toner cartridges from being produced? Well, they're now suing 24 companies for infringing on 15 patents they have on toner cartridges. The article ...
The Protomen - Rock Music and Mega Man Combined.
An Irrelevant Take on the Zombie Goodness of the Walking Dead
Halloween Fear Fest - Mega Shark VS Giant Octopus
Amnesia: The Dark Descent will induce heart problems.
Redline - 7 Years in the making and damn, it looks good.