Asshole Samsung
Samsung’s Ill-Conceived Apple VoiceOver Suit Stayed in Germany | AllThingsD
Yes, this move by Samsung against Apple was a tactical one in a nasty battle in which billions of dollars are at stake. Yes, it’s just business. But it’s ill-conceived. Even leaving aside the ethics of asserting a patent against a feature designed to help the blind, this is unwise. It’s the PR equivalent of punching yourself in the face. Samsung has now identified itself as a company willing to accept the loss of accessibility for the vision-impaired as collateral damage in its battle with Apple. It has made a big public move to make it more difficult for the blind to use computers.
German court stays Samsung’s voiceover patent lawsuit against Apple: patent likely invalid | FOSS Patents
I still believe it’s the wrong thing to assert an accessibility-related patent in a dispute like this one. Samsung didn’t assert this German patent in an effort to protect its investment in accessibility. It elected to use an accessibility-related patent as a tactical weapon. Patent protection and enforcement can be justified in certain scenarios. For example, if there are two companies competing in the market for hearing aids, it’s generally legitimate for them to assert accessibility-related patents against each other. I would also support the idea of accessibility patent enforcement in cases of willful infringement, and if Samsung had only requested monetary compensation in this action, it would have made a much better choice than by trying to achieve, through the pursuit of an injunction, the deactivation or (more realistically) degradation of the voiceover functionality Apple provides to its German customers.
Asshole Samsung | The Loop
Maybe Samsung can find features that help people with other disabilities to attack next.
Apple patent filing points directly to ‘iWatch’ concept with flexible touchscreen display
The Meteoric Ascent of the Patent Troll and the Devastating Consequences for Innovation
The Meteoric Ascent of the Patent Troll and the Devastating Consequences for Innovation | Scientific American Blog Network
In essence, it would cost more money than the entire US software industry earns each year just for each software firm’s lawyers to skim read the 40,000 software patents published in the US each year. Obviously this is a ridiculous statement, there are only 40,000 registered patent attorneys in the US so this cannot happen, leaving the gate wide open to frivolous legal suits from competitors and patent trolls. In reality it seems, many patents don’t even get read. It’s almost as if we have taken our collective creativity and placed it in to a locked box where the main benefactors are lawyers and profiteers. In fact, there is no almost about it.
Apple’s bounce-back patent rejected by the Patent Office, but Samsung hasn’t won yet
Apple’s bounce-back patent rejected by the Patent Office, but Samsung hasn’t won yet | The Verge
The internet was abuzz yesterday with reports that Apple’s infamous “bounce-back” patent, US 7,469,381, was “tentatively invalidated” by the US Patent Office. That’s one of the patents Samsung was found to infringe, and any action by the USPTO will have major consequences. Unfortunately, all those reports were extremely premature —patents can’t be “tentatively invalid,” just like people can’t be “tentatively dead.”
More on “the Steve Jobs patent” | The Loop
U.S. patent office declares ‘the Steve Jobs patent’ entirely invalid on non-final basis
U.S. patent office declares ‘the Steve Jobs patent’ entirely invalid on non-final basis | FOSS Patents
This week, the USPTO issued a first Office action rejecting all 20 claims of U.S. Patent No. 7,479,949 on a “touch screen device, method, and graphical user interface for determining commands by applying heuristics”, which has been referred to by many people, including Apple’s own lawyers, as “the Steve Jobs patent”.
Patent office strikes blow against “Steve Jobs patent” for smart phone swipes | GigaOM
米特許商標庁、アップルのマルチタッチ技術特許にも無効の暫定的判定 | CNET Japan
HTC and Apple Settle Patent Dispute
HTC and Apple Settle Patent Dispute | Apple [Press Info]
HTC and Apple Settle Patent Dispute | parislemon
Also not explicitly stated in the release, but clear: HTC is paying Apple as a part of this agreement. It may not have an “adverse material impact” on their financials, but maybe that’s only because they’re simply not selling very many Android devices…
Why Apple and HTC settled their patent litigation | The Verge
Apple-HTC ten-year license deal shows Android patent peace is achievable | FOSS Patents
Does HTC Deal Mean End to Apple’s Patent Dispute With Android? | AllThingsD
Preliminary ruling by ITC judge clears Apple of infringement of four Samsung patents
サムスンが勝訴、アップルの特許侵害せず＝東京地裁
久しぶりに日本発アップルニュース — でも、アメリカの裁判とどう違うの？
スマホ・ＰＣ間の同期技術、アップル特許の構成要件外 | 日本経済新聞
サムスンが勝訴、アップルの特許侵害せず＝東京地裁 | Reuters
Samsung triumphs over Apple in Japan patent case | Reuters
Tokyo court: Samsung didn’t infringe Apple patent | USATODAY.com [AP]
Apple Loses Patent Lawsuit Against Samsung in Japan | Bloomberg
Apple vs. Samsung: The Longer View | Businessweek
Tokyo Court Rules Samsung Didn’t Infringe on Apple’s Patents | WSJ.com
Japanese patent ruling is a non-win for Apple and a non-defeat for Samsung — that’s all | FOSS Patents
Tokyo court gives win to Samsung after US loss | BBC News
Apple’s Patents Not So Big in Japan as Samsung Found Not Liable for Infringement | AllThingsD
米国の特許制度はズレている：Posner 判事
Judge Posner: U.S. patent system out of sync | chicagotribune.com
The U.S. judge who tossed out one of the biggest court cases in Apple Inc.’s smartphone technology battle is questioning whether patents should cover software or most other industries at all.
Richard Posner, a prolific jurist who sits on the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago, told Reuters this week that the technology industry’s high profits and volatility made patent litigation attractive for companies looking to wound competitors.
パテント・トロール Lodsys
Patent trolls beware: app makers partnering up with legal community | Ars Technica
Oracle has filed a legal complaint against Lodsys — the company that’s taken aim at app makers on Apple’s iOS, Google’s Android, and other technology platforms for infringing on its patents — with the hopes of invalidating them.
Oracle sues patent troll Lodsys | The Loop
Go Oracle!
パテント・トロールに腰を上げたアップル | maclalala2
maclalala:link 
leave a comment