First to File

October 20th, 2008

2008-10-20T11:01:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
October 20th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Qualcomm: Nokia to pay $2.5 billion
-Nike Sues Wal-Mart, Claiming Cushioned Shoe Design is Copied
-District Court Affirms Patent Infringement Rulings And Finds That Amgen Is Entitled To A Permanent Injunction Against Roche
-French drugmaker Sanofi-Aventis loses patent lawsuit in S. Korea
-Encyclopaedia Britannica loses patent case
-Mobile jurors give $192 million to Idea Man
-Fulbright's Litigation Trends Survey: U.S. Companies Prepare for Rise in Litigation - U.S. Release
-Microsoft: We're all 'mixed source' companies
-Latha Jishnu: Enter the patent troll
-Obama's and McCain's Technology Policies Examined
-Canola oil powers gasless race winners to Vegas
-Microsoft Patents the Censoring of Speech

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Qualcomm: Nokia to pay $2.5 billion

(AP) Wireless semiconductor company Qualcomm Inc. will get an upfront payment of $2.5 billion from Nokia Corp. in a settlement of a royalties dispute, a spokeswoman said Friday.

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Nike Sues Wal-Mart, Claiming Cushioned Shoe Design is Copied

(ABAJournal) Nike claims in a lawsuit filed in federal court in Chicago that Wal-Mart is selling shoes that infringe on its patented design. The suit claims Wal-Mart's Detra shoes infringe on two patents related to its Shox brand cushioning system, the Wall Street Journal reports.

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District Court Affirms Patent Infringement Rulings And Finds That Amgen Is Entitled To A Permanent Injunction Against Roche

(MedicalNewsToday) Amgen announced today that the United States (U.S.) District Court in Boston issued its written decision upholding the prior jury verdict and court rulings regarding the infringement, validity and enforceability of 10 claims of four of Amgen's erythropoietin (EPO) patents. The Court also ruled that Amgen is entitled to a permanent injunction prohibiting Roche from selling its pegylated-erythropoietin (peg-EPO) product MIRCERA in the U.S. Previously, the Court entered a preliminary injunction preventing Roche from selling peg-EPO, and Roche has appealed that ruling.

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French drugmaker Sanofi-Aventis loses patent lawsuit in S. Korea

(Trading Markets) French drugmaker Sanofi-Aventis SA has lost a legal battle with a local company Boryung Pharmaceutical Co. over its treatment for colorectal cancer, the South Korean company said Monday.

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Encyclopaedia Britannica loses patent case

(Spero News) Alpine Electronics, manufacturers of high performance mobile electronics, including mobile navigational products, won a patent infringement case started by Encyclopaedia Brtannica.

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Mobile jurors give $192 million to Idea Man

(AL) A chemical expert who contended that he created a method of transforming certain hazardous industrial wastes into lucrative manufacturing ingredients - only to have his idea usurped - was awarded a $192 million jury verdict last Friday in Mobile, AL.

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Fulbright's Litigation Trends Survey: U.S. Companies Prepare for Rise in Litigation - U.S. Release

(Fulbright.com) More than one-third of corporate counsel expect pace of new filings to increase in coming year-43% of billion-dollar companies forecasting possible litigation uptick amid economic slowdown.

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Microsoft: We're all 'mixed source' companies

(CNet) In case you were wondering, Microsoft thinks the battle of open source vs. proprietary software is basically over. "Today, but increasingly in the future, we are all going to be 'mixed source'," Microsoft's top intellectual property lawyer said in a lunchtime interview on Thursday. To bolster his claim, Horacio Gutierrez notes Microsoft is releasing plenty of stuff as open source, while open-source companies like Red Hat often license commercial software alongside their open-source products. "I actually think the war between proprietary and open source is a thing of the past," he said.

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Latha Jishnu: Enter the patent troll

(Business-Standard) If you are familiar with Norse legends you would know what a troll is. Trolls are supernatural beings, a race of giants in Icelandic mythology or goblins in the Scandinavian tradition, who were mostly evil although they could be extremely generous to humans who helped them.

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Obama's and McCain's Technology Policies Examined

(ScienceDaily) As the 2008 presidential election enters its final month, researchers at the Annenberg Research Network on International Communication (ARNIC) have found some sharp differences - and surprising similarities - in the two major candidates' positions on technology policy.

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Canola oil powers gasless race winners to Vegas

(SFGate) Wayne Keith, a hay farmer from Springville, Ala. (population 3,000), pulled into Berkeley last week driving a lime-green pickup truck that runs mostly on wood chips but sometimes cow dung, too. Keith, who wore dirt-flecked overalls and a trucker's cap, was in town to compete in the first Escape from Berkeley race, a kind of mini Cannonball Run to Las Vegas for drivers of vehicles that run on anything but petroleum.

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Microsoft Patents the Censoring of Speech

(Slashdot) On Tuesday, the USPTO awarded Microsoft a patent for the Automatic Censorship of Audio Data for Broadcast, an invention that addresses 'producing censored speech that has been altered so that undesired words or phrases are either unintelligible or inaudible.'

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October 13th, 2008

2008-10-13T11:04:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
October 13th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Verizon loses patent suit against Cox
-Intel shakes AMD's chip-fabbing baby
-TiVo gets $104.6 million check from EchoStar judgement
-Why sinking markets could mean real opportunities for patent acquirers and licensees
-Patent Lawsuit Silly Season: TechCrunch Sued For Patent Infringement After Critical Blog Post
-Former GC Reflects on Time Immersed in IP Battles
-So, How (and When) Will You Get Your Patent Term Adjustment Corrected?
-Infringement Found Because Defendant Did Not Affirmatively Plead Noninfringement
-US Government Seeking IP Law Experts; Signs Work-Sharing Deals
-Intuition + Money: An Aha Moment
-My Brain, Your Brawn

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Verizon loses patent suit against Cox

(CNet) Verizon Communications suffered a major blow in its patent battles on Monday, when a federal court ruled that cable company Cox Communications had not infringed on its patents. The telecommunications giant has accused Cox of violating six of its patents related to Internet telephony.

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Intel shakes AMD's chip-fabbing baby

(The Register) AMD's plans to spin its debt-dependent chip manufacturing biz into a separate entity may free the chipmaker from a considerable financial burden, but old rivalries with Intel will assure things don't go down without a hitch.

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TiVo gets $104.6 million check from EchoStar judgement

(MercuryNews) Tivo got its $104,600,472 payment from Echostar, now known as Dish Network, over violation of a patent held by TiVo involving digital video recorders, according to a filing it made today with the SEC.

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Why sinking markets could mean real opportunities for patent acquirers and licensees

(iam) Although there may be some question marks over the future of IP-related financing given recent events, the outlook for those seeking to acquire good quality patents and other IP rights could be very bright. That may seem counter-intuitive as stock markets across the world continue to fall, but think about it for a moment.

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Patent Lawsuit Silly Season: TechCrunch Sued For Patent Infringement After Critical Blog Post

(Techdirt) There are different levels of ridiculousness when it comes to patent lawsuits, with the lowest of the low being patent lawsuits based more on spite than on any legitimate claim. For a while, it seemed like Ray Niro's use of the infamous JPG patent, to sue a bunch companies he just didn't like, was perhaps alone in that category. But, it appears that we now have a new entrant. Apparently, some company (who we won't even name, since there's a good chance it's doing this just to get press attention) sued a more well-known competitor for patent infringement, over a location-based services patent.

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Former GC Reflects on Time Immersed in IP Battles

(LAW) When tiny Immersion Corp. had finally beaten Sony in a long, ugly patent fight, the company's general counsel, Laura Peter, gave CEO Vic Viegas a white cowboy hat. She presented it to Viegas at a celebration at the CEO's peninsula home in the spring of 2007 after Sony said it would drop all appeals and pay the San Jose, Calif., company $150 million to end five years of take-no-prisoners litigation.

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So, How (and When) Will You Get Your Patent Term Adjustment Corrected?

(Patentbaristas) As we saw in the Wyeth v. Dudas case, the US District Court for the District of Columbia overturned the USPTO's interpretation of 35 USC § 154 (the statute that prescribes patent terms). Section 154 grants extensions of patent terms for certain kinds of PTO delay. However, Congress says you can't double-dip, i.e., to the extent that periods of delay overlap, the period of any adjustment granted under this subsection shall not exceed the actual number of days the issuance of the patent was delayed.

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Infringement Found Because Defendant Did Not Affirmatively Plead Noninfringement

(Chicagoiplitigation) Judge Brown granted defendants-counterplaintiffs Square One Parachute's ("SOP") motion for summary judgment that plaintiff-counterdefendant Para Gear ("Para") infringed SOP's design patent based solely upon Para's failure to plead noninfringement as an affirmative defense. Originally, Para filed this case seeking a declaratory judgment of noninfringement and SOP counterclaimed for infringement. But Para later voluntarily dismissed its claim with prejudice.

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US Government Seeking IP Law Experts; Signs Work-Sharing Deals

(IPWatch) Private patent law attorneys should answer a higher calling and serve in the United States government so that experienced, practiced experts may help steer the country's patent system toward a better future, the chief judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said this week.

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Intuition + Money: An Aha Moment

(NYTimes) IT started with a Harvard physicist acting on a hunch. It ended up producing a new material, called black silicon, that could have a broad impact on technologies ranging from ultrasensitive sensors to photovoltaic cells.

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My Brain, Your Brawn

(WSJ) Decades after his father sold bagels and bialys on New York's Lower East Side, Gary Schwartzberg was convinced he had a product that could reinvent his family business. With a partner, Mr. Schwartzberg had developed a tube-shaped bagel filled with cream cheese -- an all-in-one, portable breakfast for the on-the-go crowd.

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October 6th, 2008

2008-10-06T11:03:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
October 6th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Court Awards Cordis $1.2 Bln. In Patent Litigation Against Medtronic, Boston Scientific
-Will Johnson & Johnson Ever Get Its Money?
-Omaha man loses patent lawsuit against Nike
-Small Cleveland law firm awarded millions because courtroom rivals didn't play fair
-Eastern Texas' IP 'Rocket Docket' Shows Signs of Slowing
-Who Owns the Law? Arguments May Ensue
-Patent trolls: Drain on innovation or defense of invention?
-German Court Sees First Signs of European Patent Trolls
-Has the Economic Mess Diluted Biotech's Hand
-Want to be more productive? Sleep on it
-How the Telescope Changed Our Minds
-Niceville entrepreneur hopes golf game rings up sales

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Court Awards Cordis $1.2 Bln. In Patent Litigation Against Medtronic, Boston Scientific

(RTTNews) Cordis Corp., a Johnson & Johnson company, announced Tuesday that the U.S. District Court in Delaware has awarded about $1.2 billion to the company in a patent infringement lawsuit against Medtronic Inc.

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Will Johnson & Johnson Ever Get Its Money?

(The Motley Fool) You'd think that a $1.2 billion award would make you happy. But the lawsuit that triggered it is just another fact of life for investors in pharma. Let's take a closer look at this particular example.

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Omaha man loses patent lawsuit against Nike

(Associated Press) An Omaha man has lost his patent infringement lawsuit against Nike Inc. Gerald Kellogg sued the Beaverton, Ore.-based athletic shoe and apparel company in 2007, claiming Nike had stolen his design for a vented cap. Kellogg sought between $2 million and $8 million.

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Small Cleveland law firm awarded millions because courtroom rivals didn't play fair

(Cleveland.com) Attorneys from an international law firm who supposedly misled and deceived jurors have been ordered to help pay $4.4 million in fees to the Cleveland lawyers who were their courtroom opponents in a patent trial.

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Eastern Texas' IP 'Rocket Docket' Shows Signs of Slowing

(Law.com) Patent lawsuit filings in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas -- long considered a national "rocket docket" for intellectual property litigation -- are ebbing after a steady increase during the past seven years.

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Who Owns the Law? Arguments May Ensue

(NYTimes) IN a time when scientists are trying to patent the very genetic code that creates life, it may not be too surprising to learn that a variety of organizations - from trade groups and legal publishers to the government itself - claim copyright to the basic code that governs our society.

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Patent trolls: Drain on innovation or defense of invention?

(MHT) Imagine you've developed an innovative product for a competitive market. One week after you launch the product, a lawyer contacts you. His client, a company you've you never heard of, claims a small but essential component of your product infringes a patent they own. Unless you settle for a licensing agreement, you'll find yourself in court in East Texas within a year.

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German Court Sees First Signs of European Patent Trolls

(Law.com) Could it be that the patent troll, once believed to survive only in the concrete jungles, high-tech valleys, and small Texas towns of North America, has extended its range to Europe? A case pending before a German court in Mannheim could signal its arrival.

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Has the Economic Mess Diluted Biotech's Hand

(TMC/BioWorld Today Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Three CEOs walk into a congressional hearing. One heads an investment bank, the other a automotive company and the third a pharmaceutical company. . . . OK, I've made up the opener. Someone, somewhere, must have a conclusion to this joke. It's begging to be told, if only so that frustrated citizens can blow off a little steam. Pharma execs have been in the hot seat for some time up on Capitol Hill, and whatever else they may be feeling about the financial turmoil currently gripping the nation, it must be mingled with a bit of relief that the nation's rage, as reflected through the lens of sanctimonious legislators, is turned elsewhere for the time being.

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Want to be more productive? Sleep on it

(SFGate) "Waste not life," wrote Benjamin Franklin, patron saint of American entrepreneurs. "In the grave will be sleeping enough." Centuries later, the attitude toward sleep in America - and in American business, in particular - has scarcely changed. Corporate culture reveres the e-mail sent at 3 a.m., the executive who rushes directly into a meeting from a red-eye flight. Bumper stickers offer an updated version of Franklin's dictum: "I'll sleep when I'm dead."

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How the Telescope Changed Our Minds

(Wired) Four hundred years after its invention, the telescope has become an essential scientific instrument, an icon of science. But it is more than just an extension of our senses - the telescope is an instrument of thought as well. Throughout its 400-year history, the telescope has changed our view of the universe and our view of ourselves.

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Niceville entrepreneur hopes golf game rings up sales

(NWFDailyNews) Sometimes inspiration for starting a business venture just shows up where you might least expect it. For Randy Herron, what he developed into a lawn game known as "Ring It! Golf" started with a visit to Greenville, N.C., eight years ago.

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September 29th, 2008

2008-09-29T12:46:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
September 29th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Judge: Microsoft doesn't owe Alcatel-Lucent $1.5B
-Judge to award J&J damages in stent suit
-P&G again sues Kraft over plastic coffee containers
-Chip Maker Rambus Wins Battles, but Faces Bigger War
-Patent exhaustion does not create a cause of action; dismissal affirmed
-IP bill passes Senate, no civil enforcement power for DoJ
-Controversial patent buyer to start Indian operations in Oct
-Google unveils its G1 cellphone, potential rival to Apple's iPhone
-An Avatar's Bill of Rights
-The Friday Flashback: Schwinn Quality, Made in Chicago
-The Birthday Last Wednesday

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Judge: Microsoft doesn't owe Alcatel-Lucent $1.5B

(AP/Physorg) Microsoft Corp. does not have to pay $1.5 billion in damages to Alcatel-Lucent SA, a panel of federal appeals judges ruled Thursday, in what may be the last word on a long-running digital music patent lawsuit.

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Judge to award J&J damages in stent suit

(TwinCities) New Jersey-based Johnson & Johnson moved a step closer to collecting several hundred million dollars from Fridley-based Medtronic and Boston Scientific in an 11-year-old dispute involving patents for heart stents.

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P&G again sues Kraft over plastic coffee containers

(Reuters) Procter & Gamble Co is again suing Kraft Foods Inc. claiming Kraft's new plastic Maxwell House coffee container infringes on patents Procter holds for its Folgers coffee brand.

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Chip Maker Rambus Wins Battles, but Faces Bigger War

(NYTimes) Craig Hampel has spent the last two years trying to design the next leap in memory chip technology, one that will allow computers to display more detailed graphics even faster. Now comes the hard part: persuading the world's memory chip manufacturers to pay for it.

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Patent exhaustion does not create a cause of action; dismissal affirmed

(filewrapper) In a decision last week, the Federal Circuit affirmed a district court's decision dismissing a case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The plaintiff brought suit when it believed the patent holder had fraudulently concealed a second licensee of the same patents.

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IP bill passes Senate, no civil enforcement power for DoJ

(Arstechnica_ The PRO-IP Act, which would ramp up enforcement of intellectual property laws and stiffen penalties for infringers, won approval by unanimous consent in the Senate Friday-but only after legislators stripped out a controversial provision that would have empowered the Department of Justice to litigate civil suits on behalf of content owners and hand over the winnings.

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Controversial patent buyer to start Indian operations in Oct

(WSJ) New Delhi: Individual inventors and research organizations here may find their patents turning liquid with the imminent entry of Intellectual Ventures Llc., a controversial company that owns an estimated 20,000 patents and is in the market for as many more as it can lay its hands on.

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Google unveils its G1 cellphone, potential rival to Apple's iPhone

(LATimes) Google Inc. on Tuesday showed off a cellphone that could provide the first real challenge to Apple Inc.'s iPhone: a mass-market device with a sharp touch screen and slide-out keyboard that brings the experience of mobile Web surfing closer to that of a personal computer.

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An Avatar's Bill of Rights

(LAW) The 3-D Internet, or "Web 3.0," is an amalgam of virtual reality, convention center, circus, college campus, nightclub, mall, playground and Main Street. Users are getting their first taste of Web 3.0 on virtual world sites like Second Life, which are typically "members only" proprietary sites accessed through the Internet. People are drawn to the interactive, immersing experience these sites offer, and by some estimates there are as many as 300 million active users.

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The Friday Flashback: Schwinn Quality, Made in Chicago

(CanyonNews) Ahhhh, the Schwinn Stingray. Our first real bicycle at 7 years of age was a Stingray in blue, with a five-speed gear shift on the top tube, banana seat, coaster brake, sissy bar and baseball cards fitted between the spokes. That Stingray sparked a lifelong love affair between the bicycle and us. Over the years we've saddled atop a seeming score of other Schwinns, including our current bike, a 2000 Mesa GS that's logged over 40,000 miles in eight years of riding.

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The Birthday Last Wednesday

Yes, the 17th of September was the 221st birthday of the Constitution, and I choose to talk about it through the three great contributions that Benjamin Franklin made to that document. Plus, of course, his summary comment on the steps of Independence Hall when the delegates were leaving for the last time, A woman approached Dr. Franklin and said, "What kind of government have you given us?" He replied, "A republic, if you can keep it."

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September 22nd, 2008

2008-09-22T11:25:00.001-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
September 22nd, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Broadcom patent claim against Qualcomm revived
-ITC to look into patent claims over Nintendo's Wii
-Samsung bid for SanDisk shows memory market woes
-Intellectual Ventures Getting Antsy; Expect Lawsuits Soon
-Invention Capitalism & the Law: Checking in on Nathan Myhrvold
-Acacia tops troll litigation league
-Want a Declaratory Judgment? Don't Stipulate to Infringement, Validity, and Enforceability of the Patent in Question
-Patent examiner made two legal errors in stem cell patent decision, consumer advocates claim
-University of Utah scientist sues firm over contribution to invention
-Stephen Hawking unveils oddest clock ever
-Lambert jumps into automotive "fad"

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Broadcom patent claim against Qualcomm revived

(AP/LATimes) A U.S. appeals court resurrects a claim against one type of chip involving transmitting of radio signals. It upholds a finding in Qualcomm's favor on a second patent and is reviewing a third.

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ITC to look into patent claims over Nintendo's Wii

(EETimes) The Washington based International Trade Commission will rule over a patent violation claim against games console maker Nintendo brought by a Rockland, Maryland based research company, Hillcrest Labs, which says the hugely successful Wii console violates its IP.

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Samsung bid for SanDisk shows memory market woes

(AP/RockyMountainNews) A $5.85 billion bid by Samsung Electronics Co. to take over SanDisk Corp., a wounded competitor that also serves as a partner, reflects the turbulence in the market for flash memory, a key ingredient in digital cameras, music players and other devices.

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Intellectual Ventures Getting Antsy; Expect Lawsuits Soon

(TechDirt) By this point, it should be rather clear what we think of Nathan Myhrvold's Intellectual Ventures project. It's perhaps the biggest threat to innovation around, as Myhrvold is collecting a ton of patents (now up to 20,000 apparently) and pressuring companies to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to get blanket licenses to avoid getting sued.

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Invention Capitalism & the Law: Checking in on Nathan Myhrvold

(WSJ) Nathan Myhrvold - who began college at age 14, and went on to earn a master's degree in mathematical economics and a PhD in theoretical and mathematical physics by age 23 - is perhaps the most mentioned Law Blog subject who doesn't own a law degree. Why? One word: patents.

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Acacia tops troll litigation league

(AIM) Acacia Technologies is the most litigious non-practising entity/troll (delete according to preference) in the United States. According to research done by PatentFreedom, which is featured in an article to be published in the next issue of IAM, Acacia has been involved in a total of 308 cases in the US courts, 239 of which have been filed since 2003.

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Want a Declaratory Judgment? Don't Stipulate to Infringement, Validity, and Enforceability of the Patent in Question

(Patentbaristas) In Janssen Pharma v. Apotex (08-1062), Apotex tried to get the federal circuit to grant a do-over of the dismissal of its declaratory judgment action for noninfringement against Janssen. Janssen holds an approved NDA for its drug Risperdal® Oral Solution for which the Orange Book listed U.S. Patent Nos. 4,804,663, 5,453,425 and 5,616,587. The '663 patent has been the subject of prior litigation where it was found to be infringed, valid, and enforceable. While Apotex was not a party to that trial, Apotex stipulated to infringement, validity, and enforceability of the '663 patent based on the Federal Circuit opinion.

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Patent examiner made two legal errors in stem cell patent decision, consumer advocates claim

(WTNNews) In a brief filed with the U.S. Patent Office's board of appeals and interferences, consumer watchdog groups have cited two legal errors allegedly made by a patent examiner in confirming a Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation patent on human embryonic stem cells. The groups that filed the briefs, Consumer Watchdog and the Public Patent Foundation, have asked that WARF's claims on patent 913 be rejected.

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University of Utah scientist sues firm over contribution to invention

(SLTrib) A University of Utah chemist has sued a Utah County firm, alleging that its devices - potentially lucrative hand-held units that field test for chemical agents - are based on patents he helped author.

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Stephen Hawking unveils oddest clock ever

A $1.8 million mechanical clock featuring a massive time-eating grasshopper made its debut at the University of Cambridge Friday, and famed cosmologist Stephen Hawking was on site to introduce the strange and provocative timepiece.

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Lambert jumps into automotive "fad"

(Timesbulletin) It was an exciting year. Nellie Bly completed her round-the-world journey in 72 days. The United States Census Bureau began using a tabulating machine that utilized punch cards to count census returns. Idaho and Wyoming were welcomed as states. Vincent van Gogh committed suicide and the Wounded Knee Massacre took place in South Dakota. A Brooklyn painter named Robert Gair became disgusted with the flimsy nature of the paper board boxes and invented the much stronger corrugated cardboard box.

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September 8th, 2008

2008-09-08T10:31:00.001-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
September 8th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Kodak sues Sun over Java
-Appeals Court Overturns $49M Patent Award Against TARGUSinfo
-TiVo Shares Fall After No Decision In Dish Case
-'Uphill battle' lies ahead in Crocs' patent claims
-PATENTS; New patents study findings have been reported from University of Iowa
-Can Protest Prevent Patents?
-Chinese Scientists Build Big Pharma Back Home
-Big Pharma Keen on Partnering With Academia
-Some IP Attorneys Look to Make Their Mark as Patent-Holders
-Apple admit Briton DID invent iPod, but he's still not getting any money
-PENCILS: In high-tech world, what's the point?
-Techman: Patent-minded woman an early musician, artist, techie

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Kodak sues Sun over Java

(ComputerWorld) Eastman Kodak Co. has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Sun Microsystems Inc. over its Java programming technology, Sun said late yesterday. The software and hardware maker offered no details of the lawsuit, and Eastman Kodak has yet to disclose its filing, which was made in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, according to a statement from Sun.

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Appeals Court Overturns $49M Patent Award Against TARGUSinfo

(MarketWatch) The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit rejected on Aug. 29, 2008 the enhanced-damage award issued against TARGUSinfo and vacated the $49 million damages award against Targus Information Corporation (TARGUSinfo) in a patent suit over technology for routing calls to 800-numbers.

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TiVo Shares Fall After No Decision In Dish Case

(BN/MultichannelNews) TiVo shares plunged 16.5% Thursday after a federal judge did not issue a decision on the company's request to hold Dish Network in contempt of a court order related to TiVo's patent-infringement victory against the satellite operator.

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'Uphill battle' lies ahead in Crocs' patent claims

Crocs has waged war on alleged knockoffs, filing patent-infringement complaints left and right. The company's tenacity is easy to understand. If Crocs fails, and competitors are able to sell similar shoes successfully and at lower prices, the loss of market share "could be devastating," according to Kevin O'Brien, a lawyer and professor at the University of Denver's Daniels College of Business.

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PATENTS; New patents study findings have been reported from University of Iowa

(LexisNexis/PharmaBusinessWeek) According to a study from the United States, "The patent doctrine of inequitable conduct dictates that any material information a patent applicant intentionally withholds from an examiner while obtaining a patent can render the applicants patent unenforceable. Yet, the standard for materiality under the doctrine of inequitable conduct has changed frequently over the past thirty years."

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Can Protest Prevent Patents?

(Pharmtech) Americans are focused on the election in November, but it bears mentioning that voting is not the only way to participate in democracy. Expressing your opinion about an issue to legislators and other public officials can be an effective way to get them to take your side.

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Chinese Scientists Build Big Pharma Back Home

(BusinessWeek) The cocktail chatter in a private room at Manhattan's Cornell Club turned to a hush as 40 pharmaceutical executives, investment bankers, and attorneys raised their wine glasses to Raymond Wu, who died on Feb. 10. The Cornell University geneticist helped pioneer drought-resistant rice.

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Big Pharma Keen on Partnering With Academia

(RedOrbit) Big pharmaceutical companies have shifted their focus towards partnering with academic institutions for scientific discoveries and other innovations, reported the Financial Times. According to the news source, drug majors are increasingly looking towards the academia to overcome limited late-stage pipelines and failures in drug development. Rise in generic competition for top-selling drugs and shortage in the drug development pipeline are said to be the prime reasons behind the sudden focus on the industry-academia partnership.

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Some IP Attorneys Look to Make Their Mark as Patent-Holders

(Law) Looking at a patent recently asserted against a client, Silicon Valley patent litigator Chris Graham had a moment of disbelief. The Dechert attorney saw that the named inventor on the patent, which was being used to sue online resume-posting sites like his client Monster.com, was an attorney he knew -- San Jose, Calif., lawyer Michael Powell, now an associate at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges.

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Apple admit Briton DID invent iPod, but he's still not getting any money

(DailyMail) Apple has finally admitted that a British man who left school at 15 is the inventor behind the iPod. Kane Kramer, 52, came up with the technology that drives the digital music player nearly 30 years ago but has still not seen a penny from his invention.

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PENCILS: In high-tech world, what's the point?

Like pennies and paper clips, pencils occupy the junk drawers of life. They're chewed, snapped in two, used as back-scratchers and drum sticks. They point to charts, punch in phone numbers, and prop open books. We buy them maybe once a year - if we've got children in elementary school.

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Techman: Patent-minded woman an early musician, artist, techie

(Post-Gazette) In the early 1900s, the ladies and gentlemen who donned their finery to attend a performance of the Pittsburgh Orchestra at the Carnegie Music Hall may have heard concert pianist Mary Hallock-Greenewalt perform. But many of those culture mavens probably didn't know that they were seeing a woman of not only musical talents, but also technological ones.

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September 2nd, 2008

2008-09-02T10:33:00.001-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
September 2nd, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Qualcomm violates Broadcom patent injunction
-PlayStation 3 at risk as Sony faces Blu-ray patent lawsuit
-Judge Cuts Damages In Boston Scientific Patent Row
-Appeals Court Vacates $49 Million Award in Patent Case
-USPTO Seeks Practitioners to Test Online Continuing Education System.
-Breaking the patent logjam
-Too common scientific fraud should be punished
-Light Reading For Labor Day: 2007 Annual US Court Report
-Daydream achiever
-Father-son team offers tech innovation

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Qualcomm violates Broadcom patent injunction

The US District Court for the Central District of California has found wireless telecommunications products and services company Qualcomm in contempt of an order designed to prevent the company from violating three Broadcom patents.

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PlayStation 3 at risk as Sony faces Blu-ray patent lawsuit

(The TechHerald) With a recent consumer report revealing that Sony's Blu-ray format is struggling to find market traction, the high-definition standard is now facing a potentially costly court battle with Orinda Intellectual Properties USA, which claims that Sony's HD platform infringes on its patented technology.

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Judge Cuts Damages In Boston Scientific Patent Row

(Dow Jones/SmartMoney) Boston Scientific Corp. said a federal judge found two patents held by rival Medtronic Inc. to be unenforceable and slashed the damages Boston Scientific must pay in a patent-infringement case involving devices to remove blockages in coronary arteries.

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Appeals Court Vacates $49 Million Award in Patent Case

(LegalTimes) The Federal Circuit last Friday dialed up 1-800-REVERSE. In a patent dispute between companies that route "1-800" phone calls for major companies, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit tossed a $49 million enhanced-damage award lodged against Virginia-based Targus Information Corp.

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USPTO Seeks Practitioners to Test Online Continuing Education System.

(Anticipate This) The USPTO is developing a Continuing Education for Practitioners ("CEP") system for on-line delivery of educational materials to patent practitioners, and is seeking help in piloting the on-line system. The CEP system is built on the recognition that a smoothly operating patent system requires well-qualified USPTO personnel working hand-in-hand with up-to-date patent practitioners.

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Breaking the patent logjam

(FT) Any effective system of patent administration requires close co-operation between private inventors and government officials. Unlike land, or mining, or even copyright claims, it takes more than a simple filing to perfect a patent claim.

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Too common scientific fraud should be punished

(NewsDay) Scientists enjoy a high level of public credibility. Their pronouncements on matters ranging from global warming to cloning are usually taken at face value. But while most scientists are honest, that doesn't mean we should unquestioningly accept what they say. A study released this month says that scientific fraud is not being seriously punished.

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Light Reading For Labor Day: 2007 Annual US Court Report

(271 Patent Blog) When you're not preoccupied wiping BBQ sauce from your hands (and children's faces) this weekend, the Statistics Division for the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts released its annual report (all 416 pages) on "Judicial Business of the United States Courts."

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Daydream achiever

(The Boston Globe) ON A SUNDAY morning in 1974, Arthur Fry sat in the front pews of a Presbyterian church in north St. Paul, Minn. An engineer at 3M, Fry was also a singer in the church choir. He had gotten into the habit of inserting little scraps of paper into his choir book, so that he could quickly find the right hymns during the service. The problem, however, was that the papers would often fall out, causing Fry to lose his place.

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Father-son team offers tech innovation

(The News Sentinel) A Fort Wayne father-and-son team has developed technology that could transform the radio-frequency identification tags now commonly used to track and manage inventory.

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August 25th, 2008

2008-08-25T11:25:00.001-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
August 25th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-US company sues Nintendo in Wii wand patent suit
-Why is the Marshall, Texas, district court known even in Minnesota for hearing patent lawsuits?
-NTP Can't Leave Well Enough Alone Concerning RIM
-Cisco employees deny directing patent "troll" blog
-How patent gridlock is blocking the development of lifesaving drugs.
-No case or controversy when patentee doesn't even know of potentially infringing product
-Annals of the Patently Absurd
-Is a College Football Playoff Patented?
-From the sky to the midway, it's been a wild ride
-A Man and His Gun: 'Mr. Gatling's Terrible Marvel'

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US company sues Nintendo in Wii wand patent suit

(AP) Nintendo's hit Wii console with its wandlike remote controller has been targeted in patent infringement complaints by a U.S. technology company.

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Why is the Marshall, Texas, district court known even in Minnesota for hearing patent lawsuits?

(TwinCities) The sleepy town of Marshall, Texas, is looming larger than ever for medical device companies in the Twin Cities. The federal courthouse in the town of 24,000 has helped propel the Eastern District of Texas into the country's most popular venue for patent lawsuits, raising the chances a Twin Cities manufacturer either will sue or be sued in the district.

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NTP Can't Leave Well Enough Alone Concerning RIM

(Techdirt) In one of the biggest travesties of the patent system, over two years ago, RIM agreed to pay NTP $612.5 million for patent infringement, even though the USPTO had been rejecting NTP's patents on re-exam. The patents were highly questionable: extremely broad patents covering pretty basic concepts about making email "wireless."

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Cisco employees deny directing patent "troll" blog

(MarketWatch) A current and a former Cisco Systems Inc. employee on Monday denied they coordinated an anonymous blog that railed against attorneys pursuing patent litigation against Cisco and other technology companies.

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How patent gridlock is blocking the development of lifesaving drugs.

(Forbes) How patent gridlock is blocking the development of lifesaving drugs. A curious thing happened on the way to the biotech revolution. While investment in biotech research and development has increased over the last three decades, new drugs that improve human health have not been forthcoming at the same rate.

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No case or controversy when patentee doesn't even know of potentially infringing product

(File Wrapper) In a decision last week, the Federal Circuit upheld a district court's decision that Article III jurisdiction did not exist in a case where a potential infringer was seeking a declaration of noninfringement. The district court granted a motion to dismiss the under the Federal Circuit's pre-MedImmune reasonable apprehension of suit test, noting that there was no reasonable apprehension of suit.

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Annals of the Patently Absurd

(O'Reilly Radar) Microsoft has received a patent on a "new and improved" Page-Up and Page-Down system. Timothy D. Sellers et al. was awarded the patent on August 19, 2008 for a "Method and system for navigating paginated content in page-based increments."

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Is a College Football Playoff Patented?

I recently discovered US Patent #6053823: Method for conducting championship playoff. It's quite clear that it's for a college football playoff. It includes a "Coaches' Poll, Writers' Poll and Independent/Objective Poll," all combined to produce a playoff bracket.

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From the sky to the midway, it's been a wild ride

(Statesman Journal) Lee Eyerly was an aviation pioneer. He set up a flight school and service shop near the Oregon State Fairgrounds, before Salem even had an airport. He was among those who hounded city officials to build one, and when they finally did, he moved his operations there.

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A Man and His Gun: 'Mr. Gatling's Terrible Marvel'

(NYSun) Richard Jordan Gatling (1818-1903), the inventor of the weapon that bears his name, had a passion for setting objects in orderly motion. His first invention was a four-bladed, screw-type ship's propeller, for which he just missed establishing a patent.

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August 18th, 2008

2008-08-18T13:04:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
August 18th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Patent lawsuit puts spotlight on a pair of heavyweights
-Maintain an automated networked database? GraphOn wants to sue you
-Broadcom wins latest patent battle over GPS technology
-Nevada Jury Awards Inventor Gil Hyatt $388 Million Against California's Taxing Agency
-Exposing The Patent Troll Playbook... And How To (Almost) Beat It
-Fish & Richardson Settles Suit Against Ex-Partner Over Patent Sale
-Patent Office Adopts New Rules for Conduct
-Evident domain
-Is the USPTO Trying to Put Itself In A Better Light On Appeal?
-Why Treating Patents As Property Is A Bad Idea
-No Inequitable Conduct if Examiner Finds Withheld Reference while Searching
-Historically Speaking: Boy from Griswold grew up to design great Army rifle
-Getting a grip for 25 years

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Patent lawsuit puts spotlight on a pair of heavyweights

(UNION-TRIBUNE/SignonSandiego) Poway entrepreneur Cary Jardin - a co-founder of IPivot, an Internet hardware company that was sold to Intel for $500 million in 1999 - claims a more recent concept was stolen by a former employee.

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Maintain an automated networked database? GraphOn wants to sue you

(ZDNet) GraphOn is suing Google for patent infringement and the company appears to be doing a nice imitation of NTP, the company that made its name by suing Research in Motion. GraphOn is going for gold in the patent troll Olympics.

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Broadcom wins latest patent battle over GPS technology

(CNet) Chipmaker Broadcom has won the latest battle in a patent dispute with SiRF Technology Holdings, a developer of location-based technologies.

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Nevada Jury Awards Inventor Gil Hyatt $388 Million Against California's Taxing Agency

(PRNewswire/StreetInsider) Gil Hyatt, a Nevada inventor, scientist and engineer with over 70 patents from the United States Patent & Trademark Office to his credit, was awarded more than $388 million by a Nevada jury against the Franchise Tax Board of the State of California. Liability was based on torts committed by the Franchise Tax Board while auditing Mr. Hyatt's residency, during the time he received substantial sums of money for licensing his patents.

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Exposing The Patent Troll Playbook... And How To (Almost) Beat It

(Techdirt) We've written about patent hoarding firm RTI before, back when it sued Google. At the time, we pointed to Rich Tehrani's fantastic article about the company and how it was basically one guy who claimed his rather narrow patents covered pretty much everything having to do with VoIP. Pretty much any company of any substantial size that had anything to do with VoIP had been on the receiving end of threats and/or lawsuits from RTI.

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Fish & Richardson Settles Suit Against Ex-Partner Over Patent Sale

(ABAJournal) Fish & Richardson has settled its lawsuit against ex-partner Scott Harris that claims he breached his duties to the firm by selling his inventions to patent trolls, one of which sued a firm client.

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Patent Office Adopts New Rules for Conduct

(PatentBaristas) The United States Patent and Trademark Office (Office) is adopting new rules governing the conduct of disciplinary investigations, issuing warnings when closing such investigations, disciplinary proceedings, non-disciplinary transfer to disability inactive status and reinstatement to practice before the Office.

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Evident domain

(SCMagazine) With e-discovery laws in effect, companies find benefits to data archiving, says TLC Vision's Roger McIlmoyle. Dan Kaplan reports.

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Is the USPTO Trying to Put Itself In A Better Light On Appeal?

(PatentBaristas) In a notice labeled "Clarification of Patent Regulations Currently in Effect, and Revision in Applicability Date of Provisions Relating to Patent Applications Containing Patentably Indistinct Claim," the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) published a notice to "clarify" just which patent-related regulations are currently in effect.

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Why Treating Patents As Property Is A Bad Idea

(Techdirt) We've pointed out in the past why it doesn't make much sense to treat "intellectual property" as "regular property," since it ignores some very important differences between the two. James Bessen and Michael Meurer, who wrote the recent book Patent Failure have always taken a slightly different approach. While they agree with us that the patent system tends to do more harm than good (and they've got a ton of research to back that up), they claim that the problem is that patents don't act enough like property.

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No Inequitable Conduct if Examiner Finds Withheld Reference while Searching

(PatentlyO) In 2007, Teva sued Apotex infringing its carvedilol patents. Apotex counterclaimed with charges of inequitable conduct - alleging that Teva had failed to disclose "any of the English language counterparts" of a submitted prior art reference.

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Historically Speaking: Boy from Griswold grew up to design great Army rifle

(NorwitchBulletin) Some individuals show early signs and foreshadowing of what they will accomplish as adults. Today we look at one such individual (John Cantius Garand).

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Getting a grip for 25 years

(ScrippsNews) They started as cardboard and wood prototypes assembled in a Portland, Ore., garage. Now they're made of stainless steel and hang from belts, sit in pockets and ride in backpacks to the most remote corners of the world. The Leatherman multitool, must-have equipment for many a working man and/or outdoorsman, turned 25 last month.

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August 11th, 2008

2008-08-11T13:03:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
August 11th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-New patent suits against Google, Palm and mobile phone makers
-Google Sued For Patent Infringement For Keeping Track Of How Many Ads People Click On
-Reexamination Filings Continue Their Upward Trend
-Lawyer Points Out That Simultaneous Invention Can Get Patents Tossed
-Economic Gridlock - the Invisible Cost of IP Law
-Is It Time To Offshore Protection For Inventions?
-Streams of Thought: The Patent Wars
-US patent office tweaks rule amid court fight
-Lawyering Your Company's Transition to Software as a Service
-Table tennis it's not the game it used to be
-Who really made the first motorcycle?
-The Word About Scrabble

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New patent suits against Google, Palm and mobile phone makers

(heise-online) Despite the efforts of the US Supreme Court to limit the awarding of trivial patents, a number of information technology and telecommunications firms are once more facing accusations of infringing processes that, although not very innovative, are nevertheless protected by industrial property rights. The US firm Aloft Media late last week sued Research in Motion, AT&T, Motorola, Nokia and Sony Ericsson in the Federal Court in Marshall, Texas, which has shown itself to be quite friendly to patent holders.

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Google Sued For Patent Infringement For Keeping Track Of How Many Ads People Click On

(Techdirt) It still seems rather amusing (if not twisted) that some patent system supporters are trying to convince the world Google would be harmed by an absence of software patents. Instead, it seems increasingly obvious that it would only serve to help Google, who is a regular target of questionable patent infringement lawsuits.

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Reexamination Filings Continue Their Upward Trend

(ipfrontline) In the September 2007 issue of this newsletter, we reported on the latest reexamination statistics available at that time. In this issue, we provide an update on those figures based upon the USPTO's recent release of statistics for the first half of fiscal year 2008. Both ex parte and inter partes reexamination filings continue to increase, with inter partes reexaminations again scoring a sizeable increase.

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Lawyer Points Out That Simultaneous Invention Can Get Patents Tossed

(Techdirt) For years, we've pointed out how ridiculous it is that our patent system doesn't include an independent invention defense. It seems rather against the concept of promoting innovation to say that someone who invented something entirely independently should be barred from using his own invention just because someone else invented the same thing slightly earlier.

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Economic Gridlock - the Invisible Cost of IP Law

(Slashdot) "This week's New Yorker magazine has a financial article, 'The Permission Problem,' discussing the hidden cost of patent, trademark and copyright laws. It's a subject anyone here already knows well, but he brings up two interesting points...

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Is It Time To Offshore Protection For Inventions?

(IPToday) With all three branches of the United States government resolutely eroding the value of U.S. patents, it may be time to consider a new patent filing paradigm: partially offshoring protection of intellectual property.

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Streams of Thought: The Patent Wars

(Streaming Media) As content delivery networks (CDNs) commoditize and as streaming grows up, there are three ways for companies to create market share: disrupt, enhance, and defend.

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US patent office tweaks rule amid court fight

(Reuters) - The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office said on Thursday it would limit the retroactivity of a controversial new rule aimed at reducing the size of patent applications and cutting a backlog of patent requests.

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Lawyering Your Company's Transition to Software as a Service

(IPToday) As a general counsel, you're well versed in meeting the legal needs of your employer, a company that has been producing and selling a software product successfully for some time. Change has come, however, and you've just received new marching orders from the CEO - your company will adopt a Software as a Service business model.

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Table tennis it's not the game it used to be

(Sierra Star) Although chants of USA! USA! USA! probably won't echo in the cavernous Beijing University Gymnasium on August 13, the table tennis venue will be packed with frenzied fans from around the world rooting their teams on.

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Who really made the first motorcycle?

(The Economic Times) When it comes to the origins of the motorcycle, the history books are unanimous in crediting Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach for creating the archetype in 1885. However, while there is little doubt that their "Petroleum Reitwagen" was indeed the first two-wheeler to be successfully fitted with an internal combustion engine, it is not quite accurate to refer to it as the first true motorcycle.

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The Word About Scrabble

(Creators) So have you heard about the Scrabble squabbles, the brouhaha over Scrabulous, the popular but unauthorized version of the game played online by millions of Facebook users? It was created by a pair of brothers in India, much to the dismay of Hasbro, controllers of the game in the United States, who have their own application on Facebook launched two years after Scrabulous and considered by most fans to be inferior.

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August 4th, 2008

2008-08-04T13:02:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
August 4th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Appeals Court Revives Patent Suit Against Microsoft
-Microsoft bites the bullet on .Net suit
-Nintendo puts up $38 M to keep Wii in the game
-Did Qualcomm Really Win?
-Inventors flock to file patents in US
-Admitted Patent Troll Finds The Phrase 'Shell Entity' Offensive
-Intellectual Property on Trial
-Another Circuit Court Kicks Judge Real Off Case
-Delaware known as haven for patent suits
-Kids invent the darndest things, and the U.S. patent office wants to see them
-Man who didn't stop thinking dies at 100

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Appeals Court Revives Patent Suit Agaist Microsoft

WASHINGTON - Reviving a $500 million patent lawsuit against Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), a federal appeals court ruled Friday that a trial judge was too quick to throw out claims alleging that the software giant infringed six patents related to digital imaging.

Microsoft bites the bullet on .Net suit

After the Seattle Post Intelligencer reported last week that Vertical Computer Systems (VCSY) and Microsoft had settled their .Net patent suit, three Cringesters emailed me on a Sunday wondering why this story hasn't gotten more attention.

Nintendo puts up $38 M to keep Wii in the game

Nintendo of America was told last week that it had to stop making its Wii game controllers because the product infringed on the patents of a Texas game designer. Now Nintendo has put up more than $38 million in bonds to keep its popular device on store shelves.

Did Qualcomm Really Win?

You wouldn't know it by the stock's reaction last week (up 21 percent in two days), but after looking past the warm and fuzzy press releases, I'm not so certain Qualcomm Inc. came away a winner in its settlement with Nokia Corp.

Inventors flock to file patents in US

The United States is again the favored destination to patent inventions after 43 years in which Japan and the now-defunct Soviet Union held the lead, a U.N. report said Thursday.

Admitted Patent Troll Finds The Phrase 'Shell Entity' Offensive

You may recall last year that we wrote about a patent lawsuit where the judge banned the use of the word "patent troll." That seemed reasonable enough, since it's clearly a negatively loaded phrase.

Intellectual Property on Trial

Chrysler's "Let's Refuel America" sales incentive sounds like a gas giveaway that puts the car maker on the hook for skyrocketing gas prices-but look again.

Another Circuit Court Kicks Judge Real Off Case

In a rare move, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit booted a trial judge off a patent infringement case Friday.
But it was not so unusual for the judge: U.S. District Judge Manuel Real.

Delaware known as haven for patent suits

Lawyers are fleeing hometown courts to file patent infringement complaints in places like Delaware and east Texas where it's easier to win, a new study shows.

Kids invent the darndest things, and the U.S. patent office wants to see them

You'd think that the last thing needed by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, which as of last fall had a two-year backlog of pending applications, would be more people submitting their ideas.

Man who didn't stop thinking dies at 100

RUTLAND- George L. Gershman packed a lot of living into his 100 years and even more into his stories, but the most important truth about him is that he never retired his mind.

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July 28th, 2008

2008-07-28T11:40:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
July 28th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Qualcomm, Nokia avert Mobile World War
-Motorola wins text messaging patent case
-Nintendo Loses Battle with Patent Troll, Faces Ban
-Microsoft and the Yahoo patent portfolio
-State to get nearly $7 million in settlement with drug company
-Intellectual Ventures seeks to raise $2.5B
-US Patent Office rulings threaten key Google patent, says expert
-When the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups Principle Doesn't Apply
-A prayer for Microsoft
-Inventor knew that rain must fall

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Qualcomm, Nokia avert Mobile World War

(EETimes) The announcement this week of an intellectual property agreement between Qualcomm and Nokia is one that has the industry buzzing, with implications not only for the two companies involved, but also for the intellectual property (IP) and wireless communities at large, as well as the consumer.

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Motorola wins text messaging patent case

(AP/CNN) Motorola Inc., the world's No. 3 cell phone maker, said Friday it won a patent case filed against the company over its text messaging software.

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Nintendo Loses Battle with Patent Troll, Faces Ban

(eFlux Media) Nintendo lost a battle with patent troll Anascape, a company which somehow got its hands on twelve overbroad patents which appear to have no other aim than to rip off gadget makers. Nevertheless, U.S. District Judge Ron Clark in Lufkin, Texas, rejected Nintendo's request to overturn an earlier ruling which ordered Nintendo of America to pay $21 million to Anascape.

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Microsoft and the Yahoo patent portfolio

(MarketWatch) The latest thinking in the Silicon Valley scene regarding the Microsoft-Yahoo-Carl Icahn Saga, which is not going away, might be about some sort of killer patent owned by Yahoo. Right now financial researchers everywhere are trying to figure out what exactly the patent is.

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State to get nearly $7 million in settlement with drug company

(Seattle Times) Bristol-Myers Squibb has agreed to pay the Washington state nearly $7 million to settle allegations of illegal marketing and pricing of prescription medications.

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Intellectual Ventures seeks to raise $2.5B

(Bizjournals) Intellectual Ventures LLC, the Bellevue patent-collecting firm founded by former Microsoft Chief Technology Officer Nathan Myhrvold, is seeking to raise up to $2.5 billion for a new investment fund, according to a regulatory filing.

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US Patent Office rulings threaten key Google patent, says expert

(security.itproportal.com) Recent US patent rulings could undermine the patentability of software in the US at a stroke, a leading US patent expert has warned.

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When the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups Principle Doesn't Apply

(EFF) When I was a kid, it seemed that every third commercial I saw was for Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

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A prayer for Microsoft

(CNET) Sunday morning, and I couldn't help but ponder Michael Tiemann's excellent note on Microsoft's revised (and improved) Open Specification Promise and "what Microsoft can do for open source."

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Inventor knew that rain must fall

(Rep-Am) Maybe you've played this game. Light rain drizzles down on your car's windshield.

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July 21st, 2008

2008-07-21T10:25:00.001-07:00

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
July 21st, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-FTC hammers invention, patent promoters with $10M settlement
-Thomson wins appeal of software patent verdict
-3Com to Receive $70 Million from Realtek to Resolve Patent and Technology Issues
-Patents: The New Class Action Frontier?
-Hynix Might Pay $51 Million to Rambus for U.S. Access (Update3)
-Can a Patent Plaintiff Reserve Claims to be Filed in a Later Lawsuit?
-Protect later innovations without starting new patent application
-Creating A List From A Database? Prepare For A Patent Infringement Suit
-Trade agreement plans do not include iPod frisking
-Job Spotlight: Why Patent Examiners are getting upto a $9,000 signing bonus from Uncle Sam
-Patent Expiries, Empty Pipelines, And Safety Concerns Spell Woe For Pharma Industry
-Attorney dies after 107 well-spent years

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FTC hammers invention, patent promoters with $10M settlement

(NetworkWorld) The owners of an invention promotion operation that charged up to $12,000 to evaluate and promote consumers' inventions agreed today to pay $10 million in consumer redress to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they deceived consumers across the country.

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Thomson wins appeal of software patent verdict

(AP) A federal appellate court in Philadelphia on Monday overturned a jury's finding that Thomson Reuters Corp. infringed a patent for trading municipal bonds in Internet auctions.

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3Com to Receive $70 Million from Realtek to Resolve Patent and Technology Issues

(BUSINESS WIRE/WSJ) 3Com Corporation today announced that on July 11, 2008 3Com and Realtek Group reached an agreement with respect to certain networking technologies of 3Com that will resolve the long-standing patent dispute between the companies

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Patents: The New Class Action Frontier?

(The Recorder/Law.com) An intense patent fight between rivals Synopsys Inc. and Magma Design Automation cost Magma $12.5 million to settle last year.

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Hynix Might Pay $51 Million to Rambus for U.S. Access (Update3)

(Bloomberg) Hynix Semiconductor Inc., the world's second-largest maker of memory chips, might be forced to pay more than $51 million a year, or 11 cents a share, to Rambus Inc. rather than be barred from its $1.2 billion computer-chip market in the U.S. by a federal judge in California.

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Can a Patent Plaintiff Reserve Claims to be Filed in a Later Lawsuit?

(PatentlyO) Over the past few years, the CAFC has been developing its jurisprudence on both claim preclusion and issue preclusion. A new appeal will likely add to the mix.

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Protect later innovations without starting new patent application

(TechJornal) Today's rapidly-changing technological environment mandates that companies continually revise and refine their innovations to keep up with their markets.

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Creating A List From A Database? Prepare For A Patent Infringement Suit

(Techdirt) Thanks to the whole slew of folks who sent this in: TechCrunch has the details on Channel Intelligence, a company that owns a ridiculously broad and obvious patent on creating a list from a database and is now suing a whole bunch of small websites that offer things like wishlists.

Read More

Trade agreement plans do not include iPod frisking

(Proportal) A feared trade agreement between the world's richest countries that opponents claimed would allow for the examining and impounding of iPods at airports is unlikely to result in such activities.

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Job Spotlight: Why Patent Examiners are getting upto a $9,000 signing bonus from Uncle Sam

(OhMyGov!) One could argue that the patent system in the United States is the single key to the economic success of capitalism in this country.

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Patent Expiries, Empty Pipelines, And Safety Concerns Spell Woe For Pharma Industry

(Pharmaceuticalonline) Informa Pharma analyst Dr Peter Charlish highlights the tough issues facing the pharma industry and explains why the next few weeks will be critical in gauging how the world's major drug companies will fare during the next couple of years.

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Attorney dies after 107 well-spent years

(ConcordMonitor) Where do you start when speaking about Charles Yardley Chittick?

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July 14th, 2008

2008-07-14T10:24:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
July 14th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-3Com to Receive $70 Million from Realtek to Resolve Patent and Technology Issues
-Boston Scientific loses bid for new patent trial in drug-treated stent case
-Patent lawsuit leads to claim of bribery
-Man says Nike cashing in on his cap
-Patent pools may flow in wake of latest alliance
-Time To Close The ITC Patent Injunction Loophole
-Is Cost Accounting To Blame For Patent Hoarding?
-Patent Gridlock Suppresses Innovation
-Can the USPTO handle the surge of going GREEN?
-Apple introduces real-world gestures

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3Com to Receive $70 Million from Realtek to Resolve Patent and Technology Issues

(BUSINESS WIRE/WSJ) 3Com Corporation today announced that on July 11, 2008 3Com and Realtek Group reached an agreement with respect to certain networking technologies of 3Com that will resolve the long-standing patent dispute between the companies.

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Boston Scientific loses bid for new patent trial in drug-treated stent case

(The Canadian Press) A U.S. federal judge rejected a request by Boston Scientific Corp. for a new trial in a patent-infringement case that ended with a US$501-million judgment against the medical-device maker.

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Patent lawsuit leads to claim of bribery

(Star Tribune) Buried deep in the pleadings of a patent infringement lawsuit in Minneapolis is a rare glimpse into a world of corporate intrigue highlighted by allegations of bribery to grab a lucrative foreign contract for producing government identity cards.

Read More

Man says Nike cashing in on his cap

(WORLD-HERALD) Gerald Kellogg may never walk in Lance Armstrong's shoes, but he says the two wear the same cap.

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Patent pools may flow in wake of latest alliance

(EE Times) A group of 11 high tech companies that have combined their clout to buy, license and sell strategic patents may point the way for more patent pools to come in a maturing market for intellectual property.

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Time To Close The ITC Patent Injunction Loophole

(Techdirt) For quite some time, we've been pointing out how patent holders have been using a bit of a loophole to get two separate shots at getting an injunction against other companies in patent disputes.

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Is Cost Accounting To Blame For Patent Hoarding?

(Techdirt) Michael F. Martin is a lawyer/investor who is always good for some interesting debates in the comments here on the question of patents.

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Patent Gridlock Suppresses Innovation

(WSJ) The Founders might have used quill pens, but they would roll their eyes at how, in this supposedly technology-minded era, we're undermining their intention to encourage innovation.

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Can the USPTO handle the surge of going GREEN?

(PLI) We have lived the technology boom, the biotech/pharmaceutical boom, and now we are faced with an increasing level of reorganizing our lives to become more politically correct citizens and conserve energy.

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Apple introduces real-world gestures

(Macnn) A new Apple patent was published by the US Patent & Trademark Office late last week that generally relates to the detection and interpretation of gestures by touch-and-hover sensitive devices like the iPhone, and more particularly, to the detection and interpretation of real-world gestures and security-related gestures by touch and hover sensitive devices.

Read More

July 7th, 2008

2008-07-07T09:33:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
July 7th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-U.S. Patent Office ruling supports Titleist
-Nokia, InterDigital Unit Settle Suits
-In a "Surprising" Victory, Barr and Mylan Invalidate Boehringer Ingelheim's Patent on Mirapex
-Patent-holders' next target: medical device makers?
-Intellectual Property on Trial
-The value of branding becomes patent
-Seven Questions in Seven Minutes with USPTO Director John LeGuyader
-US striving for sustainability
-Reigniting the Engine of Growth with the Sparkplug of Invention
-Encouraging results from Peer-to-Patent
-July 7, 1936: Get a Grip - Phillips Screws Up the Toolbox

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U.S. Patent Office ruling supports Titleist

(Standard-Times/southcoasttoday) Acushnet Co. won a victory last week in its ongoing fight against Callaway Golf for the right to continue to manufacture its wildly successful Titleist Pro V1 golf balls.

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Nokia, InterDigital Unit Settle Suits

(WSJ) Nokia Corp. settled two patent-infringement lawsuits in U.K. courts with a unit of InterDigital Inc., a wireless-technology developer.

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In a "Surprising" Victory, Barr and Mylan Invalidate Boehringer Ingelheim's Patent on Mirapex

(istockanalyst) Last week, following a bench trial held in March, the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware held that Boehringer Ingelheim's patent on Mirapex (pramipexole dihydrochloride) is invalid for obviousness-type double patenting.

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Patent-holders' next target: medical device makers?

(thepriorart) I reported a few weeks ago that following two big verdicts against Boston Scientific, patent-holding company Acacia Research Corporation filed a lawsuit in the medical-device area.

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Intellectual Property on Trial

(americanbanker) Sick and tired of "patent troll" lawsuits against banks, the Financial Services Roundtable and several institutional members such as Bank of America are urging a federal court to overturn the patentability of certain business method processes.

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The value of branding becomes patent

(ft) More companies are filing for patents in China - and suing to enforce patent rights there - than anywhere else in the world, highlighting a new Chinese attitude to intellectual property.

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Seven Questions in Seven Minutes with USPTO Director John LeGuyader

(patentbaristas) This week Patent Baristas talked with John LeGuyader, Director of TC 1600 at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, about the regarding the biotech section's take on alternate claiming strategies and restrictions:

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US striving for sustainability

(delawareonline) Secured to one corner of the Graham Hall roof, a set of solar panels keeps the lights on inside the University of Delaware's Center for Energy and Environmental Policy.

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Reigniting the Engine of Growth with the Sparkplug of Invention

Why do patents end up in litigation? Typically, people answer that it is the amount of money at stake. This answer is not wrong.

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Encouraging results from Peer-to-Patent

(O'reillyRadar) Congratulations to the organizers of Peer-to-Patent, which is carrying off one of the most audacious experiments in Internet activism in our day.

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July 7, 1936: Get a Grip - Phillips Screws Up the Toolbox

(Wired) 1936: Henry F. Phillips receives patents for a new kind of screw and the new screwdriver needed to make it work.

Read More

June 30th, 2008

2008-06-30T09:00:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
June 30th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-SAP to Pay $83.3 Million in Patent Settlement
-Sun scores blow against NetApp
-S.C. Johnson sued over patent
-Patent troll Acacia takes one in the kisser
-Company Files Defamation Action Against Patent Holding Company
-Tech giants aim to cut patent trolls off at the pass
-Microsoft on open source: "We should have done it earlier"
-J&J CEO leaves door open for getting into generics
-India way behind China in filing patent applications
-Why Patent Applications Increase in a Down Economy
-Sweet Science: IBM Teams With Chocolatier to Grow Better Beans

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SAP to Pay $83.3 Million in Patent Settlement

(PCWorld) SAP has agreed to pay i2 Technologies, maker of SCM (supply chain management) software, $83.3 million to settle a patent claim i2 brought against the enterprise software maker.

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Sun scores blow against NetApp

(Blocks and Files) Sun has had one of the patents cited by NetApp in its ZFS patent infringement case against it temporarily removed from the litigation. NetApp and Sun couldn't agree a settlement of the case though.

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S.C. Johnson sued over patent

(JS Online) Dial Corp., the maker of Renuzit air freshener products, has sued Racine-based S.C. Johnson & Son Inc., accusing the company of patent infringement.

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Patent troll Acacia takes one in the kisser

(CNet) While much of the industry lives in fear of a patent troll rearing its ugly head, Cognex has decided to take on trolls like Lemelson and Acacia, and has been spanking them on a regular basis.

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Company Files Defamation Action Against Patent Holding Company

(271) Cognex has established a reputation for aggressively defending itself against patent infringement from holding companies.

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Tech giants aim to cut patent trolls off at the pass

(ZDnet) Verizon, Google, Cisco, Ericsson and HP are joining a group designed to buy up intellectual property before other parties acquire it to launch lawsuits.

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Microsoft on open source: "We should have done it earlier"

(CNet) No, it's not Steve Ballmer pounding the podium in favor of open source, but apparently Microsoft's field is being told to play nice.

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J&J CEO leaves door open for getting into generics

(Reuters) Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N: Quote, Profile, Research) has not ruled out going into generic drugs, says its chief executive, noting the large opportunities from many medicines going off patent.

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India way behind China in filing patent applications

(Economic Times) India and China might be the competing economic giants globally, but when it comes to innovation, the land of dragon is way ahead, filing nearly seven times more patent applications compared to our country.

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Why Patent Applications Increase in a Down Economy

(Black Enterprise) Even in a down economy, New Jersey companies continue to generate new patent applications, keeping attorneys specializing in intellectual property rights busy.

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Sweet Science: IBM Teams With Chocolatier to Grow Better Beans

(TechNewsWorld) IBM is putting its considerable computing horsepower to use in the search for better chocolate.

Read More

June 23rd, 2008

2008-06-23T10:51:00.001-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
June 23rd, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Microsoft must pay Alcatel-Lucent $512M for patents
-Pitt sues again over patents, this time in California
-Whirlpool Case On Two Patents Against LG Electornics Should Be Terminated By ITC,Judge Rules
-Inequitable Conduct Based on Petition to Make Special
-The Zuckerberg Patent Application: Another Seed in the Walled Garden?
-Legal strategy
-U.S. Patent Reforms Might Force Firms to Rely on Trade Secrets
-United Kingdom: The Patents Game: How Strong Is Your Hand?
-When Patents Get Political
-Self Motivation and Quality in Examination
-When Companies Copy Gadgets, Is It Inspiration or Stealing? The Experts Speak

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Microsoft must pay Alcatel-Lucent $512M for patents

(AP) A federal judge ordered Microsoft Corp. to pay Alcatel-Lucent $511.6 million in damages and interest, letting stand a jury's decision that the software maker infringed on two patents.

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Pitt sues again over patents, this time in California

(Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) The University of Pittsburgh, turned down by a federal judge in Pittsburgh, has taken a patent infringement lawsuit against the world's largest producer of radiotherapy equipment for cancer treatment to a California court.

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Whirlpool Case On Two Patents Against LG Electornics Should Be Terminated By ITC,Judge Rules

(The FINANCIAL) The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) should terminate Whirlpool Corporation's case on two patents asserted against LG Electronics' advanced freezer drawer features, according to a ruling by ITC Administrative Law Judge Theodore Essex.

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Inequitable Conduct Based on Petition to Make Special

(Patently-O) There are many companies that value quick prosecution and issuance. Yet, few have taken the PTO's offer of accelerated examination (AE).

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The Zuckerberg Patent Application: Another Seed in the Walled Garden?

(Profy) Someone on Hacker News was kind enough to post a link to a patent application filed under Facebook CEO and co-founder Mark Zuckerberg's name.

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Legal strategy

(The Boston Globe) Dave Grannan was leading an afternoon product development meeting last Wednesday at the Harvard Square offices of Vlingo Inc. when he was rudely interrupted by a process server bearing a lawsuit.

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U.S. Patent Reforms Might Force Firms to Rely on Trade Secrets

(TMCnet) Recent Supreme Court rulings and reform at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), coupled with activity in the World Health Organization and the World Trade Organization, are weakening patents and tipping the scales toward keeping innovation in biotech as trade secrets rather than risking patent disclosure.

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United Kingdom: The Patents Game: How Strong Is Your Hand?

(Mondaq) The Trading Technologies (TT) and E-Speed court case is a timely reminder of the importance and potential value (or cost) of patents in the financial sector.

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When Patents Get Political

(American) Last month, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) withdrew from consideration until 2009 a bill that would have represented the first major overhaul of American patent laws in more than half a century.

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Self Motivation and Quality in Examination

(Livejornal) In general, if you know that the job that you do is important and makes a real difference, I would think that would make it easier to be self motivated to do the best job possible.

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When Companies Copy Gadgets, Is It Inspiration or Stealing? The Experts Speak

(Gizmodo) When a company comes out with an innovative, landmark product, many other companies will end up incorporating those design features into their own products over time.

Read More

June 16th, 2008

2008-06-16T09:20:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
June 16th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Court Says Mylan's Generic Prilosec Doesn't Violate AstraZeneca Patents
-Nintendo Sues Over Wireless Nunchuck
-Blackboard Plays Defense For a Change, as Company Is Sued for Patent Infringement
-HP And Acer Make Nice, Settle Patent Lawsuit
-EU pushes open-source standard as 'smart business
-Patent litigation by the numbers
-Alberto Gonzales to Help `Special Master' on Check Patent Case
-Patents for All: The System That Could Not Contain Itself
-Losing Our Lead in Innovative R&D
-Looking for a start-up idea and VC funding? Call Microsoft

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Court Says Mylan's Generic Prilosec Doesn't Violate AstraZeneca Patents

(Thomson Financial) Mylan Inc. said Tuesday a federal appeals court has affirmed that omeprazole, the company's generic version of acid reflux drug Prilosec, doesn't infringe patents asserted by AstraZeneca.

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Nintendo Sues Over Wireless Nunchuck

(Next-Gen) At a glance, Nyko's wireless Kama Nunchuck (pictured) appears plenty different from Nintendo's first-party Nunchuck controller, simply because Nyko's offering is wireless, and Nintendo's isn't.

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Blackboard Plays Defense For a Change, as Company Is Sued for Patent Infringement

(The Cronicle) Blackboard Inc., the higher-education software company known for aggressively enforcing its patents, has been sued for allegedly infringing on another company's patent.

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HP And Acer Make Nice, Settle Patent Lawsuit

(ChannelWeb) The year-old back-and-forth patent litigation between No.1 global computer vendor Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) and Acer finally came to an end Monday when both companies agreed to a confidential agreement.

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EU pushes open-source standard as 'smart business

(AP) The EU's top antitrust official called Tuesday on member governments to use open-source software, an apparent jab at Microsoft Corp.'s proprietary technology.

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Patent litigation by the numbers

(Filewrapper) PricewaterhouseCoopers recently published its annual litigation study entitled 2008 Patent Litigation Study: Damages awards, success rates and time-to-trial. The study examined a wide range of variables pertaining to patent litigation from 1995 to 2007.

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Alberto Gonzales to Help `Special Master' on Check Patent Case

(Bloomberg) Former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who was forced from his job amid a controversy over the firings of federal prosecutors, has been hired to provide assistance to a special master on a patent case.

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Patents for All: The System That Could Not Contain Itself

(Huffington Post) Last week, the Supreme Court unanimously reversed the Court of Appeals for Federal Circuit in Quanta v. LG. Electronics.

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Losing Our Lead in Innovative R&D

(BusinessWeek) To hear the National Academy of Sciences tell it, the U.S. faces little risk of losing its technology dominance.

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Looking for a start-up idea and VC funding? Call Microsoft

(Computerworld) Microsoft Corp. may not have the best reputation on patent issues, but in one area it appears to be friendlier and more progressive than other IT vendors.

Read More

June 9th, 2008

2008-06-09T09:20:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
June 9th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Jury rules Microsoft didn't violate patent
-US court overturns patent ruling for LG vs Quanta
-Biotech giants demand a high price for saving the planet
-Patent Filings Surge in China
-FTC appeals Rambus loss in standards case
-Patent Hoarder Caught Shuffling Patents Around To Sue Multiple Times
-Patent Battles Continue Over Wireless Email
-Employee inventions may lead to patent battles with employers.
-Awards in big US patent cases may be stabilising after several years of decline
-Microsoft Patents DMP 'Cell Phone Killer' Device

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Jury rules Microsoft didn't violate patent

(SeattlePI) Microsoft Corp. didn't violate a patent owned by Alcatel-Lucent SA when producing its Xbox 360 video game player, a jury said, rejecting Alcatel-Lucent's bid for $419 million in damages.

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US court overturns patent ruling for LG vs Quanta

(Reuters) - The Supreme Court overturned Monday a ruling in favor of South Korea's LG Electronics Inc in a dispute with Quanta Computer Inc of Taiwan over whether the license to a patent automatically passes to whoever purchases the goods.

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Biotech giants demand a high price for saving the planet

(The Independent) Giant biotech companies are privatising the world's protection against climate change by filing hundreds of monopoly patents on genes that help crops resist it, a new investigation has concluded.

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Patent Filings Surge in China

(Businessweek) Applications are rising by 20% a year on the mainland, a sign of growing concern for intellectual-property rights. But could they be trouble for multinationals?

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FTC appeals Rambus loss in standards case

(Reuters) The U.S. Federal Trade Commission asked an appeals court on Friday to reconsider its decision overturning a ruling that computer chip company Rambus Inc (RMBS.O: Quote, Profile, Research) violated antitrust laws, an FTC staffer said.

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Patent Hoarder Caught Shuffling Patents Around To Sue Multiple Times

(Techdirt) Last year, we noted the trend for various patent hoarding entities to set up a group of shell companies with which to sue companies. Part of the reason for doing so was to make it that much more difficult for the companies being sued to even know who they were fighting against.

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Patent Battles Continue Over Wireless Email

(Techdirt) While RIM is often portrayed as a victim for having to pay out $612.5 million in the patent infringement lawsuit filed by patent holding firm NTP, what gets less attention is that part of what kicked off NTP's lawsuit was the fact that RIM itself was going around suing pretty much everyone for patent infringement itself.

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Employee inventions may lead to patent battles with employers.

(Insidecounsel) In 1990, David Barstow was pursuing a dream. By day, he wrote computer code for the oil and gas drilling operations of his employer Schlumberger Technology Corp. At night and on weekends, he worked with his brother Daniel on a very different project: software that would produce computer simulations of live sporting events.

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Awards in big US patent cases may be stabilising after several years of decline

(IAM) We are not quite half way through 2008 and already in the US we have seen several very large patent damages awards handed down by the country's first instance courts. Two of them have been in the last couple of weeks.

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Microsoft Patents DMP 'Cell Phone Killer' Device

(Laptoplogic) Microsoft has put a patent on a device they call the DMP, which would allow companies to kill any feature on your cell phone at their discretion.

Read More

June 2nd, 2008

2008-06-02T09:20:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
June 2nd, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Operators, Vendors Accuse Patent Firm Of Modem 'Sham'
-D: Nathan Myrhvold Says He's No Patent Troll
-Cornell wins $184M verdict in patent case
-Boston Scientific told to pay Medtronic $250M in patent suit
-Rocket Docket Of East Texas Not Fast Enough For Lawsuit Against The Troll Tracker?
-Bill would change patent law in favor of crash parts
-Microsoft Demanding Some Of Immersion's Patent Booty From Sony
-Apple iPhone Losing Market Share to RIM, But Patent Could Indicate Future Features
-Images + Hyperlinking = patent infringement?
-O'Brien: Obama, McCain need to talk tech

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Operators, Vendors Accuse Patent Firm Of Modem 'Sham'

(Multichannel) The five largest cable operators and six DOCSIS equipment manufacturers have launched a new legal counterattack against a so-called "patent troll" trying to wrest millions of dollars in licensing fees from the industry.

Read More

D: Nathan Myrhvold Says He's No Patent Troll

(Barrons) Nathan Myhrvold, founder of Intellectual Ventures, and former CTO at Microsoft, contends that he is not a patent troll - although that is how his firm is often portrayed. Instead, he says, the firm is a new way of funding innovation that he calls invention capital.

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Cornell wins $184M verdict in patent case

(Syracuse.com) On the witness stand in federal court in Syracuse, a Cornell University professor promised to support charity if the university won a patent infringement trial against Hewlett-Packard Co. in a dispute over his invention.

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Boston Scientific told to pay Medtronic $250M in patent suit

(Bizjournals) A jury in Texas has ruled against Boston Scientific Corp. in a patent suit brought against the Natick medical device company by its chief rival Medtronic Inc., which was also awarded damages of $250 million.

Read More

Rocket Docket Of East Texas Not Fast Enough For Lawsuit Against The Troll Tracker?

(Techdirt) Joe Mullin has all the latest details on the ongoing defamation lawsuit filed by some East Texas lawyers against Rick Frenkel (better known as the Patent Troll Tracker) and his employer Cisco.

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Bill would change patent law in favor of crash parts

(Search-Autoparts) The U.S. House of Representatives is considering new legislation that would create an exemption in U.S. patent law covering the production of aftermarket automobile parts.

Read More

Microsoft Demanding Some Of Immersion's Patent Booty From Sony

A few weeks back, we wrote about how Immersion was involved in a bizarre lawsuit involving a firm focused on the "teledildonics" market (look it up -- or, actually, you're probably better off not).

Read More

Apple iPhone Losing Market Share to RIM, But Patent Could Indicate Future Features

RIM is cleaning up in the smart phone market, but for how long? The 3G iPhone is widely expected to be launched in a week, and documents released by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office show iPhone features we haven't seen yet.

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Images + Hyperlinking = patent infringement?

It's has been a while since a really good internet patent case came along - remember BT wanting to claim they invented hyperlinking (the Court didn't agree) - well now a small Singapore based company, called VueStar Technologies, has started sending out invoices the websites informing them that they need a licence if they use pictures or graphics to link to another web pages.

Read More

O'Brien: Obama, McCain need to talk tech

(Mercurynews) Silicon Valley has played its customary role of PiggyBank.com throughout this presidential primary season. Candidates have repeatedly visited the world's digital capital seeking one of our leading exports: campaign donations.

Read more

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May 27th, 2008

2008-05-27T09:19:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
May 27th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Cornell, HP square off in patent trial
-DuPont wins appeal in case against MacDermid
-Future Apple Devices May Be Solar Powered
-Volkswagen Challenges Texas Judge Ruling the Most Patent Suits
-Arkansas company wants to put legal squeeze on Smucker
-EU official wants disclosure to end patent ambush
-Mexico farmers celebrate U.S. revocation of bean patent
-Patent litigation under a future Biosimilars Act
-FTC: Legal Settlements Delay Cheaper Drugs
-MISTER BIRO: Exclusive inventor who wrote his own name in the history books, 70 years of the ballpoint pen

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Cornell, HP square off in patent trial

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - A $900 million heavyweight fight pits one of the nation's leading universities against one of the world's largest tech companies.

DuPont wins appeal in case against MacDermid

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) - Chemical maker DuPont on Thursday said it won an appeal in patent-infringement case against MacDermid Printing Solutions LLC.

Read More

Future Apple Devices May Be Solar Powered

Employees at Apple have filed a patent for integrating solar cells into portable devices by placing them underneath the layers of a touch-sensitive display, according to the filing.

Read More

Volkswagen Challenges Texas Judge Ruling the Most Patent Suits

May 23 (Bloomberg) In the hearing yesterday before a New Orleans appeals court, Volkswagen AG contended that a claim for damages in an auto fatality should be moved to Dallas, closer to the site of the accident. Ward had turned down Volkswagen's motion. The appeals court hasn't yet issued a ruling.

Arkansas company wants to put legal squeeze on Smucker

BENTONVILLE, Arkansas - An Arkansas company wants to put the squeeze on the J.M. Smucker Co. in federal court over squeezable food dispensers.

EU official wants disclosure to end patent ambush

Standards have always been an essential part of industry, for everything from the width of railroad tracks to broadcasting specifications. Some of these are worked out by companies, then blessed by standards organizations.

Mexico farmers celebrate U.S. revocation of bean patent

MEXICO CITY, Mexico, May 21, 2008 The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has finally revoked a patent that it granted to a U.S. citizen years ago for a common type of Mexican bean.

Patent Litigation Under a Future Biosimilars Act

Biopharmaceuticals, such as Epogen(epoetin) and Erbitux(cetuximab), are becoming increasingly important for the treatment of disease. U.S. sales of such drugs were about $40 billion in 2006 and are expected to rise to over $90 billion in 2009.

FTC: Legal Settlements Delay Cheaper Drugs

Pharmaceutical companies eager to keep less expensive alternatives to their drugs off the market are increasingly reaching legal agreements with generic drugmakers to accomplish that goal, a government agency said Wednesday.

MISTER BIRO: Exclusive inventor who wrote his own name in the history books, 70 years of the ballpoint pen

His new invention would sweep the world one day - and so too would his name. Biro... Laszlo Biro. No prizes, then, for guessing what his brilliant idea was.

May 19th, 2008

2008-05-19T09:18:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
May 19th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-East Texas jury orders Nintendo to pay $21 million to Tyler gaming company in patent case
-Network Appliance is suing Sun Microsystems for infringing on seven of their patents
-Inequitable Conduct: Failure to Submit Full Experimental Details
-Hewlett-Packard Awarded $51 Million Judgment Against Insurer, ACE
-US Agency to Investigate Semiconductor Patent Complaints
-Medical companies celebrate death of patent reform
-Bush Administration Presses On For Patent Reform Bill This Year
-Big Tech Companies Team Up To Share Info And Fight Patent Hoarders
-Can competitions raise 'cool' factor of math, science?

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East Texas jury orders Nintendo to pay $21 million to Tyler gaming company in patent case

(IHT) Nintendo of America Inc. was ordered to pay a small East Texas gaming company $21 million Wednesday for infringing on a patent while designing controllers for its popular Wii and GameCube systems.

Read More

Network Appliance is suing Sun Microsystems for infringing on seven of their patents

(Half Life Source) Sun shares closed down 2 percent after Network Appliance announced the suit, which also seeks a court ruling that Network Appliance is not infringing three of Sun's U.S. patents and that those patents are invalid.

Read More

Inequitable Conduct: Failure to Submit Full Experimental Details

(Patently-O) The CAFC affirmed a ruling that the Lovenox patents - owned by Aventis - are unenforceable due to a failure to submit important experimental information during prosecution.

Read More

Hewlett-Packard Awarded $51 Million Judgment Against Insurer, ACE

(PR-Inside) Federal District Court Judge James Ware found ACE Insurance Company owed Hewlett-Packard more than fifty-one million dollars in defense expenses, prejudgment interest and costs for defending an antitrust counterclaim under "advertisers' injury" coverage.

Read More

US Agency to Investigate Semiconductor Patent Complaints

(PCWorld) The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has voted to investigate complaints by two U.S. companies that 18 other companies are violating their patent for semiconductor chips containing tungsten metal.

Read More

Medical companies celebrate death of patent reform

(ZDNet) Medical device makers and drug companies are celebrating the apparent death of the 2008 Patent Reform Act.

Read More

Bush Administration Presses On For Patent Reform Bill This Year

(IP-Watch) Despite an apparent stalemate on patent reform in the United States Congress, the Bush administration is still pushing for a bill to be completed this congressional session.

Read More

Big Tech Companies Team Up To Share Info And Fight Patent Hoarders

(Techdirt) While the Patent Troll Tracker remains darkened, the world at large is definitely missing out on some of the more useful information he provided on his blog, shedding all sorts of light on some of the sneakier practices of various patent hoarding companies, who were often shell companies to hide the real identity of who was behind the lawsuits.

Read More

Can competitions raise 'cool' factor of math, science?

(CSMonitor) Math bees and science smackdowns for teen brainiacs are on the rise, along with efforts to fuel interest in those fields.

Read More

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May 12th, 2008

2008-05-12T09:17:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
May 12th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Appeals court issues split ruling in Alcatel-Lucent patent case
-INVISTA sues Dupont for withholding 'inventors'
-US trade agency wants to end deals delaying generics
-Report: Toyota loses Prius patent appeal
-Armstrong Foundation sued over "LiveStrong" tagline
-Online Gambling Patent Matter Could Get Ugly
-Patent Changes: Coming and Going
-U.S. Court Mulls Standard For Business Method Patents
-In the Air Who says big ideas are rare?
-A Guardian Angel In Your Cell Phone

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Appeals court issues split ruling in Alcatel-Lucent patent case

(CNet) A federal appeals court issued a split ruling on Alcatel-Lucent's patent infringement lawsuit against Microsoft and Dell.

Read More

INVISTA sues Dupont for withholding 'inventors'

(Reuters) A Koch Industries Inc subsidiary sued DuPont Co (DD.N: Quote, Profile, Research) on Wednesday to force the U.S. chemical company to provide three staffers the unit needs to defend itself in a patent dispute.

Read More

US trade agency wants to end deals delaying generics

(Reuters) A practice by major pharmaceutical companies of paying generic drug companies to delay putting cheaper medicines on the market violates federal law and must be stopped, a top ranking official with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said.

Read More

Report: Toyota loses Prius patent appeal

(Detroit Newswire) The U.S. Supreme Court let stand a $4.3 million award against Toyota Motor Corp. for using another company's patented technology in gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles, including the top-selling Prius, Bloomberg News reported today.

Read More

Armstrong Foundation sued over "LiveStrong" tagline

(Bizjornals) An Oklahoma man has sued the nonprofit foundation created by Lance Armstrong for patent infringement over black and yellow dog collars showing the "LiveStrong" logo.

Read More

Online Gambling Patent Matter Could Get Ugly

(Gambling911) A complaint filed in a Missouri Supreme Court against seven online-gaming companies alleging infringement of U.S. Patent No. 5,564,001, titled "Method and System for Interactively Transmitting Information Over A Network Which Requires Reduced Bandwidth" could result in default judgments and potential confiscation of domain names.

Read More

Patent Changes: Coming and Going

(Patentbaristas) It appears that the Senate has pulled the plug on the Patent Reform Act (S. 1145) after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pulled the bill from the floor schedule. This is not a huge surprise given the interests against it.

Read More

U.S. Court Mulls Standard For Business Method Patents

A U.S. appeals court heard arguments Thursday over whether a patent should have been issued for a method to reduce the risk of sudden changes in energy costs.

Read More

In the Air Who says big ideas are rare?

(The New Yorker) Nathan Myhrvold met Jack Horner on the set of the "Jurassic Park" sequel in 1996. Horner is an eminent paleontologist, and was a consultant on the movie. Myhrvold was there because he really likes dinosaurs. Between takes, the two men got to talking, and Horner asked Myhrvold if he was interested in funding dinosaur expeditions.

Read More

A Guardian Angel In Your Cell Phone

(Slashdot) "Bill Gates and Ray Ozzie are listed as inventors of the Guardian Angel, which is described in a most unusual Microsoft patent application that should intrigue privacy advocates.

Read More

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Have your references available at the click of a mouse with First to File's Innovative Reference Library™

May 5th, 2008

2008-05-05T09:16:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
May 5th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-J&J Sued by P&G Over Two Patents for Teeth-Whitening Strips
-Rambus says appeals court rules on its side against Samsung
-Microsoft Hit With Patent Suit Over RoundTable
-Gillette sues Korean firm in patent case
-Battle over patent law heats up in Congress
-Patent Law Battle a Boon to Lobbyists
-European Patent Office unties tongues
-Rethinking The Patent Universe
-The Unlucky Troll
-Con man tells dad's tale in book, but how much of it is a con

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J&J Sued by P&G Over Two Patents for Teeth-Whitening Strips

(Bloomberg) Johnson & Johnson, the maker of Listerine Whitening Quick Dissolving Strips was sued by Procter & Gamble Co. over two patents for teeth-brightening products.

Read More

Rambus says appeals court rules on its side against Samsung

(Associated Press) Rambus Inc. said Tuesday an appeals court ruled on its side in a patent lawsuit with Samsung Electronics Co., denying Samsung's motion for attorney fees and instructing a district court that it dismisses the South Korean company's complaint.

Read More

Microsoft Hit With Patent Suit Over RoundTable

(PCWorld) A company that develops cameras that produce 360-degree videos is suing Microsoft for alleged patent infringement in its RoundTable conferencing product.

Read More

Gillette sues Korean firm in patent case

(The Boston Globe) Gillette Co. has accused Korean firm Dorco Co. of violating the Boston shaving giant's patents and other intellectual property, according to a lawsuit filed on Friday in US District Court in Boston.

Read More

Battle over patent law heats up in Congress

(The Salt Lake Tribune) A fight has erupted in Congress over the question of whether drugmakers and other companies should be allowed to keep patents they obtained by misrepresentation or cheating.

Read More

Patent Law Battle a Boon to Lobbyists

(NYTimes) A fight has erupted in Congress over the question of whether drug makers and other companies should be allowed to keep patents they obtained by misrepresentation or cheating.

Read More

European Patent Office unties tongues

(Financial Post) As of Thursday, applicants for patents no longer need file separate versions of their applications in the 23 official and working languages used within the European Union. Docs in one language shall henceforth be enough, provided the chosen language is officially used within the EU.

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Rethinking The Patent Universe

(Forbes) On May 8, all 12 members of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit will gather in Washington to hear a case that could reshape the entire legal landscape of just what's eligible to receive that ultimate business stamp of approval from the U.S. government--a patent.

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The Unlucky Troll

(Forbes) One of the original patent trolls is sitting on a licensing gold mine. Too bad he may never find out what it's really worth.

Read More

Con man tells dad's tale in book, but how much of it is a con?

Walter T. Shaw tells one heck of a story. His book, A License to Steal, is a compelling tale of a genius inventor who, swindled by the corporate giants of America and trying to feed a hungry family, sells his ideas to the Mafia.

Read More

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Reference Library™

April 28th, 2008

2008-04-28T09:14:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
April 28th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-LG accuses Whirlpool of patent infringement
-New York Mom Sues Victoria's Secret Over Bra Design
-MPEG-2 Patent Owners Sue Target Corporation for MPEG-2 Patent Infringement
-Bayer CropScience Goes After Chinese Company In Patent Suit
-Ex-Bristol-Myers Squibb official indicted for lying to feds
-Can Anyone Stop DataTreasury In its Patents Crusade?
-Could Constitutional Flaw Unravel Eight Years of Patent Board Rulings?
-Court asks government's views on states' patent liability
-Patent Office CIO to resign
-Patents in China - Is There Any Real Protection?
-Public successfully participates in U.S. Patent Examinination Proces

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LG accuses Whirlpool of patent infringement

(Reuters) LG Electronics on Thursday accused top appliance maker Whirlpool Corp of infringing three of the South Korean company's appliance patents.

Read More

New York Mom Sues Victoria's Secret Over Bra Design

(FoxNews) A woman sued Victoria's Secret on Monday, claiming the lingerie company's latest secret is that they stole her idea for a bra whose straps can be worn different ways.

Read More

MPEG-2 Patent Owners Sue Target Corporation for MPEG-2 Patent Infringement

(BusinessWire) MPEG LA, LLC, announced that several MPEG-2 patent owners have filed an enforcement action in the Federal District Court of the Southern District of New York against Target Corporation ("Target") and Doe Corporations 1-10, fictitious names for corporations currently unknown to the plaintiffs, for infringing patents essential to the MPEG-2 digital video compression standard used worldwide in digital television broadcasting and DVD.

Read More

Bayer CropScience Goes After Chinese Company In Patent Suit

(ChinaCSR) Bayer CropScience says it has filed a lawsuit against the Chinese company Jiangsu Tian Rong in an intermediate court in Jiangsu to enforce rights under its Chinese Mefenpyr patent.

Read More

Ex-Bristol-Myers Squibb official indicted for lying to feds

(AFP) A former senior vice president of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMS) has been indicted for lying about a patent deal involving the blood-thinning drug Plavix, justice officials said Wednesday.

Read More

Can Anyone Stop DataTreasury In its Patents Crusade?

(BankTech) It looks like Data Treasury has claimed yet another victim in its patents game. It was announced recently that PNC Financial was the latest FI to settle with the notorious patent litigant over technology around electronic check imaging.

Read More

Could Constitutional Flaw Unravel Eight Years of Patent Board Rulings?

(Law.com) The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office may have a major problem on its hands -- the possibly unconstitutional appointment of nearly two-thirds of its patent appeals judges.

Read More

Court asks government's views on states' patent liability

(CNN/AP) The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Bush administration to weigh in on a long-running fight between states and big business over whether states can be held liable for patent infringement.

Read More

Patent Office CIO to resign

(FCW) David Freeland, who has been chief information officer at the Patent and Trademark Office since 2005, has announced his plans to leave the agency.

Read More

Patents in China - Is There Any Real Protection?

(LocalTechWire) With increased pressure from the West and the World Trade Organization, China has instituted a number of reforms to its patent system.

Read More

Public successfully participates in U.S. Patent Examinination Process

(NYLS) For the first time in patent history, the general public has successfully used the Internet to help improve the quality of patent applications.

Read More

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April 21st, 2008

2008-04-21T09:13:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
April 21st, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Pfizer wins blood-pressure drug patent decision in Canada
-AstraZeneca shares soar as patent case settled
-Appeals Court Overturns $78.9 Million Patent Verdict Against DirecTV
-Seagate files patent suit against drive-maker Stec
-US senator says "trying to resuscitate" patent bill
-U.S. patent chief: applications up, quality down
-Cisco blogger dragged into patent lawyer suit
-The Greening Of Patent Litigation
-Patent trolls and patent-busters
-Apple patent could revolutionize online shopping

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Pfizer wins blood-pressure drug patent decision in Canada

(Forbes) Drug developer Pfizer Inc. said late Thursday that a Canadian court upheld a patent covering the active ingredient in its blood-pressure drug Norvasc.

Read More

AstraZeneca shares soar as patent case settled

(TimesOnline) Shares in AstraZeneca rose sharply after the pharmaceuticals group settled a legal battle against India's largest generic drugs maker over the rights to produce one of the world's most valuable medicines.

Read More

Appeals Court Overturns $78.9 Million Patent Verdict Against DirecTV

(Dow Jones/CNN) A Washington-based appeals court Friday overturned a $78.9 million patent infringement judgment against DirecTV Group Inc., in a lawsuit involving claims by Finisar Corp.

Read More

Seagate files patent suit against drive-maker Stec

(AP/Chron) Stec Inc., which makes solid-state computer drives, said Tuesday it is being sued by disk-drive maker Seagate Technology LLC for patent infringement.

Read More

US senator says "trying to resuscitate" patent bill

(Reuters) A leading senator said on Wednesday that the troubled patent bill, which has pitted big drug companies against high-tech firms, may be salvageable.

Read More

U.S. patent chief: applications up, quality down

(EE TIMES) The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recently received an application seeking a patent for what was claimed to be a better way to stand in line while waiting to use an airplane toilet.

Read More

Cisco blogger dragged into patent lawyer suit

(MarketWatch) A Cisco Systems Inc. employee who authored a controversial blog about so-called "patent trolls" has continued to draw unwanted attention to the company, this time being dragged into a high-profile tussle between a law firm and one of its ousted attorneys.

Read More

The Greening Of Patent Litigation

(Energy-Daily) The Cleantech Group at Heslin Rothenberg Farley and Mesiti P.C. continues to monitor Intellectual Property trends in the Cleantech arena. In addition to its signature Clean Energy Patent Growth Index, the Group has analyzed litigation trends in the clean energy area and has found that litigation has proliferated over the last several years.

Read More

Patent trolls and patent-busters

(ABC News) Once upon a time, Abraham Lincoln famously said that the patent system was intended to secure "to the inventor, for a limited time, the exclusive use of his invention; and thereby added the fuel of interest to the fire of genius, in the discovery and production of new and useful things."

Read More

Apple patent could revolutionize online shopping

(Palluxo) Apple seems to be creating a new way of interaction with with their online store. Their latest patent filing titled "Enhancing Online Shopping Atmosphere" demonstrates Apple's commitment to revolutionize the online shopping experience.

Read More

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April 14th, 2008

2008-04-14T09:13:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
April 14th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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3Com Wins Patent Infringement Trial Against Realtek
Microsoft to Appeal $367M Patent Ruling
Big tech companies accused of overstating patent problems
Closely-watched case may spell trouble for software patents
Patent Bill Loses Key GOP Supporter Over Damage Assessment Language
US Court Denies Dish Patent Appeal
Microsoft  Asks Supreme Court To Look Into Patent Validity
Boeing Patent Shuts Down AMC-14 Lunar Flyby Salvage Attempt

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3Com Wins Patent Infringement Trial Against Realtek

(Business Wire) 3Com Corporation Friday announced that on April 9, 2008, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California awarded the company $45.3 million for past patent infringement by Realtek Semiconductor Corporation 3Com was represented in the case by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, LLP.

Read More

Microsoft to Appeal $367M Patent Ruling

(AP/Missoulian) A jury on Friday ordered Microsoft Corp. to pay $367.4 million to Alcatel-Lucent for infringing on two patents, a decision the software maker vowed to appeal.

Read More

Big tech companies accused of overstating patent problems

(C/Net) A handful of patent lawyers on Friday beat up on large technology companies lobbying for a U.S. patent system revamp, arguing that their efforts could discourage start-ups, prompt foreign competitors to rip off inventions, and tear apart the economy more generally.

Read More

Closely-watched case may spell trouble for software patents

(ARS Technica) Two of the nation's leading civil liberties organizations and a new organization dedicated to the abolition of software patents have all filed amicus briefs in a patent case that could give the courts an opportunity to revisit the issue of software and business method patents. The case involves an application for a patent that would cover "a method for managing the consumption risk costs of a commodity" through a series of financial transactions.

Read More

Patent Bill Loses Key GOP Supporter Over Damage Assessment Language

(LexisNexis) Patrick J. Leahy, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, lost the support of a key Republican on Wednesday as he seeks to hash out new language for legislation overhauling the nation's patent laws.

Read More

US Court Denies Dish Patent Appeal

(AP) A federal appeals court said Friday it won't reconsider a ruling favoring TiVo Inc. in its patent dispute with Dish Network Corp.

Read More

Microsoft Asks Supreme Court To Look Into Patent Validity

(Techdirt) Looks like the Supreme Court will have yet another chance to weigh in on patent issues, as it's taken an active interest in the space for a few years now. Microsoft has appealed an appeals court ruling in a patent lawsuit to the Supreme Court. At issue is the standard courts need to use in assessing the validity of a patent.

Read More

Boeing Patent Shuts Down AMC-14 Lunar Flyby Salvage Attempt

(Space-Travel) Attempts to salvage a wayward GEO comsat have come unstuck in the face of institutional disinterest and an aging patent of questionable validity.

Read More

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April 7th, 2008

2008-04-07T09:08:00.000-07:00

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
April 7th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Microsoft ordered to pay $367M to Alacatel-Lucent for infringing on 2 patents
-Symantec drops Microsoft lawsuit
-US court reverses ruling for Forest in Caraco suit
-Patent Lawyers Do the Boogie as Court Shoots Down PTO Rules
-Patent Issues a Growing Concern for Banks
-Bush Administration Speaks Against Patent Overhaul
-Organized labor's opposition to patent reform bill could put Democratic senators in tough spot
-Internet, consumer patents rule at auction
-Miami-Dade sued in patent case

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Microsoft ordered to pay $367M to Alacatel-Lucent for infringing on 2 patents

(International Harald Tribune) A jury ordered Microsoft Corp. on Friday to pay $367.4 million (€233.7 million) to Alcatel-Lucent for infringing on two patents, a decision the software maker vowed to appeal.

Read More

Symantec drops Microsoft lawsuit

(The Register) Microsoft and Symantec have agreed to settle a lawsuit filed two years ago over the use of Veritas code in Microsoft products, including Windows Vista.

Read More

US court reverses ruling for Forest in Caraco suit

(Reuters) A federal appeals court reversed on Tuesday a ruling favoring Forest Laboratories Inc in a patent dispute with generic drugmaker Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories over the blockbuster antidepressant drug Lexapro.

Read More

Patent Lawyers Do the Boogie as Court Shoots Down PTO Rules

(The Wall Street Jornal) The patent crowd is an excitable bunch. Whenever a big ruling is handed down, the Law Blog typically receives a few helpful e-mails from lawyers in that practice area giving us their thoughts.

Read More

Patent Issues a Growing Concern for Banks

(Banktech) Patents are one of the issues that hover in the backs of bankers' minds -- they know patents can be important, but seldom do they address the topic unless prompted to do so by a lawsuit, say experts. Unfortunately for the banking industry, legal wrangling around financial services patents is becoming all too common.

Read More

Bush Administration Speaks Against Patent Overhaul

(PCWorld) U.S. Senate negotiators are getting closer to hammering out disagreements that are holding up a patent system overhaul, but President George Bush's administration still has concerns about the bill, an administration official said Friday.

Read More

Organized labor's opposition to patent reform bill could put Democratic senators in tough spot

(AP) The battle over patent reform, a sleepy sounding subject that affects new, cheaper medicines, Chinese counterfeits and BlackBerry addicts, has always sent high-tech companies and drugmakers to their respective corners.

Read More

Internet, consumer patents rule at auction

(CNet) Jonathan Bari didn't seem too nervous until the $725,000 glitch. A woman, taking commands from someone at the other end of her cell phone, had bid $750,000 on the patent portfolio he was selling at the Ocean Tomo IP Auction last week in San Francisco. The patents covered an online authentication system for consumers devised by his old company Catavault.

Read More

Miami-Dade sued in patent case

(Miami Herald) A lawsuit alleges Miami International Airport does not have a licensing agreement to use a patented parking security system that helps to identify stolen cars as they leave the airport's parking lots.

Read More

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March 31st, 2008

2008-03-31T09:06:00.000-07:00

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
March 31st, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Micron loses round in fight with Rambus
-Microsoft Patent Claims Force Avistar To Cut 1/4 Of Staff
-Desire2Learn patent dispute takes new twist
-Teva Can't Yet Sell Alzheimer's Generic
-Court of Appeals Reverses Lower Court Decision in Favor of TriMed, Inc. Patent Infringement...
-Judge calls for European patent litigation system
-Columbia Professor Latest To Go On The Patent Offensive
-Patent insanity
-Patent Challenge of the Week: When does a patent expire?
-The Rush To Patent the Atomic Bomb

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Micron loses round in fight with Rambus

(Idaho Statesman) After a nearly 10-year legal battle, Micron Technology could be one step closer to paying Rambus millions of dollars for infringing on the California company's patents.

Read More

Microsoft Patent Claims Force Avistar To Cut 1/4 Of Staff

(Information Week) Avistar Communications, a videoconferencing company that makes 40% of its money from licensing intellectual property, said Wednesday that it must cut a quarter of its staff and suspend the creation of a Chinese development facility in large part due to Microsoft patent challenges against all of Avistar's 29 U.S. patents.

Read More

Desire2Learn patent dispute takes new twist

(The Record) In a preliminary ruling, a U.S. patent office examiner says Blackboard Inc. should never have received the patent at the heart of the company's battle with Kitchener's Desire2Learn Inc.

Read More

Teva Can't Yet Sell Alzheimer's Generic

(AP/Yahoo Fincance) Drug developer Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. said Friday a U.S. District Court ordered Teva to tentatively refrain from selling a generic version of Eisai Co.'s Alzheimer's treatment Aricept.

Read More

Court of Appeals Reverses Lower Court Decision in Favor of TriMed, Inc. Patent Infringement...

(PR Newswire/Reuters) TriMed, Inc., a Valencia, CA-based developer and manufacturer of orthopaedic fixation devices, has announced that the United States Court of Appeals has ruled in its favor and reversed a lower court's summary judgment in its patent infringement suit against defendant Stryker Corporation (Stryker). The appellate court found that Stryker's accused device contains "precisely the same structure" shown in TriMed's patent. The decision was announced January 29, 2008.

Read More

Judge calls for European patent litigation system

(ManagingIP) A leading UK Judge has called for a "one-stop patent shop" to cater to companies that do business across Europe, after finding a patent invalid just days after is was upheld by a court in the Netherlands.

Read More

Columbia Professor Latest To Go On The Patent Offensive

(Techdirt) Over the last year or so, we've seen two disturbing trends in enforcing patents. The first, is seeing patent holders suing a bunch of companies at once rather than just one or two, as used to be standard. They do this because they fear that some type of patent reform is coming, either via Congress or the courts.

Read More

Patent insanity

(Ottawa Citizen/Canada.com) In the 21 months since he joined Wi-Lan Inc. as CEO, James Skippen has been to the moon and back.

Read More

Patent Challenge of the Week: When does a patent expire?

(PatentlyO) Last week, I wrote about whether an infringement lawsuit can properly be filed at 12:01 am on the date that the patent is scheduled to issue. A plaintiff only has standing to sue once a patent is issued, and it is not clear to me that patent has actually issued by that point (even if the patentee holds exclusive rights for the entire day once the patent has issued).*

Read More

The Rush To Patent the Atomic Bomb

(Slashdot) In case you were thinking of building your own atom bomb, you may want to weigh your intellectual property liability. It seems there are over 2000 patents covering the atom bomb.

Read More

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March 24th, 2008

2008-03-24T08:58:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
March 24th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Moving to First-to-File
-Guitar Hero In Court: Gibson Sues Retailers; Activision Responds; EA, Harmonix Sued
-Advanced Sensor Technologies takes feud with Toro to the Internet
-Apple, AT&T Re-Sued Over iPhone
-US patent appeals court rules on Roche, Amgen fight
-Dish Says TiVo Witness Gave Contradictory Testimony
-Qualcomm Still Banned from Shipping 3G Chips
-3 For-Profit Colleges Hit With Courseware-Patent Lawsuit
-ITC to hear complaint about LED / LD patent infringements
-UK Grants Rare Computer Program Patent

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Moving to First-to-File

(Patently O) The potential move to a first-to-file system has received little attention - it is certainly not the most controversial in the current package of patent reforms. Of course, this says more about the Patent Reform proposal than about the potential impact of the first-to-file change. Although not receiving the most press, in the end, this change would have the most impact on the reform package.

Read More

Guitar Hero In Court: Gibson Sues Retailers; Activision Responds; EA, Harmonix Sued

(Forbes) The spat between guitar maker Gibson, and Guitar Hero maker Activision escalated this week, as Gibson filed suit against several retailers in hopes of stopping the game's sale.

Read More

Advanced Sensor Technologies takes feud with Toro to the Internet

(Bizjournals) A small competitor of The Toro Co. has launched a public-relations campaign against the Bloomington-based lawn-equipment maker to highlight a patent dispute between the two companies.

Read More

Apple, AT&T Re-Sued Over iPhone

(InformationWeek) For the second time in less than a week, Apple has been sued for patent infringement in the Eastern District of Texas, long seen as a plaintiff-friendly venue for patent litigation.

Read More

US patent appeals court rules on Roche, Amgen fight

(Reuters) A U.S. appeals court that specializes in patent cases handed Roche Holding Ltd on Wednesday a small win in a fight with Amgen Inc over EPO anemia drugs, but Amgen won the right to have the lower court decide if the patent was infringed, said court documents.

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Dish Says TiVo Witness Gave Contradictory Testimony

(Multichannel) Dish Network asked a federal appeals court Monday to rehear the TiVo patent-infringement case, alleging that a TiVo expert witness provided contradictory testimony.

Read More

Qualcomm Still Banned from Shipping 3G Chips

(PCMagazine) Broadcom Corp said on Wednesday a U.S. appeals court let stand a lower court order barring wireless chip maker Qualcomm Inc from selling chips that infringe on three of its patents.

Read More

3 For-Profit Colleges Hit With Courseware-Patent Lawsuit

(Chronicle) Digital-Vending Services International, a company linked to a nonprofit educational group with ties to the U.S. military, has filed a patent-infringement lawsuit against three for-profit online higher-education institutions.

Read More

ITC to hear complaint about LED / LD patent infringements

(EETimes) The U.S. International Trade Commission has agreed to hear a case filed by a former Columbia University professor with a 50-year engineering career, Gertrude Neumark Rothschild, who has accused 34 companies including Nokia, Sony, Motorola, and Samsung of infringing her patents for LEDs and laser diodes.

Read More

UK Grants Rare Computer Program Patent

(Digitaltrends) It might seem strange, but in the UK it's rare for a company to be granted a patent on a computer program. According to the BBC, the way the 1977 Patents Act and subsequent case law is worded.

Read More

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About Us - IP Dealroom
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FTF Technologies provides comprehensive IP management solutions to leading corporations and law firms worldwide. One of our most popular solutions is our IP Deal Room, which helps companies during the due diligence process in mergers and acquisitions.

Acting as a neutral third party, FTF Technologies scans a target company's patent and trademark paper documents and enters digital files into a proprietary Tri-Fold system, creating an electronic workspace that mimics traditional tabbed paper IP files. The target company's intellectual property documents are then made available in a secure environment, on demand, so that those documents can be reviewed by the company 24/7. IP Deal Room also allows you to:

· Eliminate manual handling and increase review accuracy
· View ownership, licensee and assignments more rapidly
· Have transparency over the target company's portfolio
· Seamlessly upload files and folders
· Track attorney or administrator actions performed in the application
· Cut the potential loss of trade secrets
· Stage documents securely while awaiting regulatory approval

FTF Technologies specializes in finding cost-effective solutions to meet the needs of individual patent departments. To find out more information about our IP Deal Room, please visit Here.

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March 17th, 2008

2008-03-17T08:54:00.000-07:00

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Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
March 17th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-IBM Hit With $6 Million Software Fraud Suit
-Nokia Has Paid $1 Billion To Qualcomm For Tech Patents
-Apple Faces Patent Suit Filed By ZapMedia Over iTunes, iPod
-Wyeth, J&J sue Medtronic over Endeavor stent patent
-Gibson Says it Holds a Patent for Guitar Hero
-GraphOn files patent infringement suit against Yahoo, five others
-Group: Patent reform bill compromise close
-Troll Tracker, Defamation, and Splitting the Bar
-Cellphones to keep track of your purchases -- and you
-As patent cases clog courts, drugs are a lawyer's best friend

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IBM Hit With $6 Million Software Fraud Suit

(Information Week) Internet retailer Harry & David claims IBM knowingly sold it e-commerce software that violated other companies' patents and then refused to back the merchant when those companies sued or complained.

Read More

Nokia Has Paid $1 Billion To Qualcomm For Tech Patents

(Information Week) As new cell phone infrastructure technologies are introduced, handset manufacturers and service providers are placing new emphasis on intellectual property assets -- who owns them and how much they are worth.

Read More

Apple Faces Patent Suit Filed By ZapMedia Over iTunes, iPod

(Dow Jones) ZapMedia alleges patents for its system allowing the distribution of media assets to user devices were infringed when Apple unveiled its iPod MP3 player with the integrated iTunes software application in October of 2001 and iTunes store in April 2003.

Read More

Wyeth, J&J sue Medtronic over Endeavor stent patent

(HealthImagingNews) The companies filed a patent infringement suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey alleging the zotarolimus-eluting stent infringes on the claims of three patents owned by Wyeth and licensed to J&J - the '781, '146 and '728 patents. The patents relate to the use of rapamycin, or sirolimus, and its analogues - including zotarolimus.

Read More

Gibson Says it Holds a Patent for Guitar Hero

(Gameshout) Gibson has decided to sue Activision over a patent Gibson has held since 1999 which it says gives it all rights to the Guitar Hero franchise.

Read More

GraphOn files patent infringement suit against Yahoo, five others

(BizJornals) GraphOn Corp. said Monday it filed a lawsuit alleging patent infringement against Yahoo Inc., Classified Ventures LLC, IAC/InterActiveCorp., Match.com, eHarmony.com and CareerBuilder LLC.

Read More

Group: Patent reform bill compromise close

(Washington Post) Advocates of a patent reform bill stalled in the U.S. Senate say negotiators are close to working out compromises that would allow the legislation to move forward.

Read More

Troll Tracker, Defamation, and Splitting the Bar

(PatentlyO) Rick Frenkel - who until recently was known only as the Patent Troll Tracker - has now been sued for defamation by two Eastern District of Texas lawyers: Johnny Ward, Jr. and Eric Albritton. Frenkel recently revealed himself as an IP Director at Cisco Systems.

Read More

Cellphones to keep track of your purchases -- and you

(LATimes) You might not know it, but as of January it became illegal in California for companies to require workers to have devices implanted under their skin that would reveal their whereabouts at all times.

Read More

As patent cases clog courts, drugs are a lawyer's best friend

(GlobeInvestor) It must be the most thankless job on the bench.

A core group of Federal Court of Canada judges toil away in virtual anonymity, juggling an ever-growing backlog of numbingly technical cases involving hundreds of millions of dollars of corporate profits.

Read More

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About Us - IP Dealroom
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FTF Technologies provides comprehensive IP management solutions to leading corporations and law firms worldwide. One of our most popular solutions is our IP Deal Room, which helps companies during the due diligence process in mergers and acquisitions.

Acting as a neutral third party, FTF Technologies scans a target company's patent and trademark paper documents and enters digital files into a proprietary Tri-Fold system, creating an electronic workspace that mimics traditional tabbed paper IP files. The target company's intellectual property documents are then made available in a secure environment, on demand, so that those documents can be reviewed by the company 24/7. IP Deal Room also allows you to:

· Eliminate manual handling and increase review accuracy
· View ownership, licensee and assignments more rapidly
· Have transparency over the target company's portfolio
· Seamlessly upload files and folders
· Track attorney or administrator actions performed in the application
· Cut the potential loss of trade secrets
· Stage documents securely while awaiting regulatory approval

FTF Technologies specializes in finding cost-effective solutions to meet the needs of individual patent departments. To find out more information about our IP Deal Room, please visit Here.

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March 10th, 2008

2008-03-10T08:53:00.000-07:00

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
March 10th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-Microsoft Saves 41 Cents/Share With New Damages Rule
-Qualcomm defeated in patent dispute with Nokia
-CPF Ups the Ante on Patent Reform, Spells Out Damage Apportionment
-Akamai Wins Patent Dispute with Limelight
-Barr Shares Jump on Patent Dispute Win
-Patent police raid booths at CeBit trade show
-Are the rules changing for patent suit site selection?
-End of an era? Patentability of business method patents
-A Selection of Breyer's Hypotheticals

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Microsoft Saves 41 Cents/Share With New Damages Rule

(Bloomberg) Microsoft Corp. cited a new legal rule to reduce a possible loss in a patent trial under way in San Diego by $4 billion, or as much as 41 cents a share.

Read More

Qualcomm defeated in patent dispute with Nokia

(Heise Online) The British High Court has declared that the disputed patents in the patent suit between chip manufacturer Qualcomm and Nokia are broadly invalid. The action, which has been ongoing since May 2006, concerned three patents for GSM technology.

Read More

CPF Ups the Ante on Patent Reform, Spells Out Damage Apportionment

(271 Patent Blog) On March 5, the Coalition for Patent Fairness (CPF) issued a letter to Senators Leahy, Specter and Hatch proclaiming that, not only is damage apportionment necessary, apportionment considerations need to be codified to provide a template for judges to instruct juries:

Read More

Akamai Wins Patent Dispute with Limelight

(PCWorld) Limelight Networks suffered a major blow on Saturday, as a jury in the Massachusetts U.S. District Court found that the company had infringed upon a key content delivery patent held by rival content delivery network provider Akamai.

Read More

Barr Shares Jump on Patent Dispute Win

(Chron) Shares of Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc. jumped Tuesday as Wall Street predicted the drug developer would gain more revenue from generic sales of the birth-control pill Yasmin following a patent dispute victory.

Read More

Patent police raid booths at CeBit trade show

(C/Net) Dozens of exhibitors at Europe's largest gadget confab were in for a surprise this week: Suspecting patent violations, German authorities raided 51 booths, carting off cell phones, navigation devices, and other gear that allegedly infringe on patents.

Read More

Are the rules changing for patent suit site selection?

(C/Net) Forum selection--or the ability to choose the geographic location of the court where a suit for patent infringement is litigated--is one of many controversial issues related to patents these days.

Read More

End of an era? Patentability of business method patents

(C/Net) Maybe you are of a sufficient vintage to remember the game show Let's Make a Deal. But have you ever thought about the similarities between that show and the U.S. patent system?

Read More

A Selection of Breyer's Hypotheticals

(AP) A sampling of Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer's colorful use of hypothetical examples over the years:

Read More

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About Us - IP Dealroom
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FTF Technologies provides comprehensive IP management solutions to leading corporations and law firms worldwide. One of our most popular solutions is our IP Deal Room, which helps companies during the due diligence process in mergers and acquisitions.

Acting as a neutral third party, FTF Technologies scans a target company's patent and trademark paper documents and enters digital files into a proprietary Tri-Fold system, creating an electronic workspace that mimics traditional tabbed paper IP files. The target company's intellectual property documents are then made available in a secure environment, on demand, so that those documents can be reviewed by the company 24/7. IP Deal Room also allows you to:

· Eliminate manual handling and increase review accuracy
· View ownership, licensee and assignments more rapidly
· Have transparency over the target company's portfolio
· Seamlessly upload files and folders
· Track attorney or administrator actions performed in the application
· Cut the potential loss of trade secrets
· Stage documents securely while awaiting regulatory approval

FTF Technologies specializes in finding cost-effective solutions to meet the needs of individual patent departments. To find out more information about our IP Deal Room, please visit Here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

March 3rd, 2008

2008-03-03T08:51:00.000-08:00

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
March 3rd, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-EBay Agrees to Settle `Buy It Now' Patent Lawsuit
-Microsoft Challenges Avistar Patents
-Procter & Gamble Wins Patent Infringement Lawsuit for Osteoporosis Therapy Actonel
-Mass. man suing Apple over patent
-Non-Profit Group Attacks Software Patents
-Claim Construction Reversal Rates III - Additional Measures of Experience and Some Possible Explanations
-Attorney Sanctions in Patent Trials, a Trend?
-Are Patents Headed For Extinction?
-Patent attorneys help clients attain dreams, businesses

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EBay Agrees to Settle `Buy It Now' Patent Lawsuit

(Bloomberg) EBay Inc., the world's biggest online auctioneer, agreed to end a lawsuit over its ``Buy It Now'' sales option in a case that reversed an almost 100-year-old precedent in U.S. patent law.

Read More

Microsoft Challenges Avistar Patents

(Sun Herald) Avistar Communications Corporation has received notification that Microsoft Corporation has filed requests for re-examination of 24 of Avistar's 29 U.S. patents. This follows 6 months of unsuccessful business discussions. Thus far, four of the requests have been rejected by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on procedural grounds.

Read More

Procter & Gamble Wins Patent Infringement Lawsuit for Osteoporosis Therapy Actonel

(PR Newswire/MSN) Today the United States District Court of Delaware ruled in favor of The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) in the patent infringement lawsuit filed by P&G against Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. The positive ruling protects P&G's rights in the U.S. to exclusively market the osteoporosis therapy Actonel(R) (risedronate sodium tablets).

Read More

Mass. man suing Apple over patent

(Boston Globe) A Massachusetts inventor is suing Apple Inc., saying the company is illegally using his caller identification technology in the popular iPhone.

Read More

Non-Profit Group Attacks Software Patents

(PC Magazine) A group of patent organizations are banding together in an effort to eliminate software patents that they claim are threatening innovation and resulting in costly and unnecessary legal battles.

Read More

Claim Construction Reversal Rates III - Additional Measures of Experience and Some Possible Explanations

(PatentlyO) How do district court judges with varying levels of experience perform on claim construction? Are judges more likely to have their decisions affirmed when they have previous claim construction experience? Previously here and here I provided some background on the large database I compiled and some of the results.

Read More

Attorney Sanctions in Patent Trials, a Trend?

(WSJ) Perhaps it's a coincidence of timing, but not a coincidence of fact. In the span of two weeks, two different teams of outside litigators representing Medtronic in two different patent trials, heard in two different jurisdictions, were both fined attorneys fees.

Read More

Are Patents Headed For Extinction?

(Forbes) Successful free enterprise requires an effective system of property ownership rights. Economists like Hernando de Soto believe that such rights are the underpinning of capitalism and explain how for decades America's strong patent system has fostered economic growth and innovation in the face of intensifying international competition.

Read More

Patent attorneys help clients attain dreams, businesses

(NewsOK) A patent attorney for 40 years, Mike Burdick of Dunlap Codding & Rogers law firm in Oklahoma City enjoys "working with people's dreams."

Read More

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About Us...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We hope you have been enjoying this weekly newsletter. Our goal is to keep you up to date on breaking patent industry news. In case you haven't had a chance to visit our web site yet, we wanted to provide you with some information about our company and what we do.

FTF Technologies, located in Boise, Idaho, provides comprehensive patent and IP management solutions to leading corporations and law firms worldwide. We are committed to providing companies and law firms with cutting-edge patent document management systems that protect and preserve their valuable intellectual property assets.

Our revolutionary patent document management systems allow you to streamline your patent workflow process, reduce costs, expose potential licensing opportunities and protect your patent's future enforceability.

We specialize in finding cost-effective solutions to meet the needs of individual patent departments. To find out more information, please visit us at firsttofile.com

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February 25th, 2008

2008-02-25T08:43:00.000-08:00

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patent News Watch

From First to File (www.firsttofile.com)
February 25th, 2008
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Headlines for the week: (Scroll down for articles)

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-US probe starts in Whirlpool, LG patent row
-Wal-Mart, Target under RFID patent attack
-Clear Winners Unlikely In Motorola -- RIM Patent Fight
-Federal Court To Reconsider Software Patent Issue
-Analysts Say Patent Reform Will Harm Biotech, Add Costs
-Appellate Court in the Netherlands Upholds Basic Lipitor Patent, Prevents Launch of Ranbaxy Product before November 2011
-More Bad News at Tax Time
-Patent is music to firm's ears

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US probe starts in Whirlpool, LG patent row

(Reuters) Whirlpool Corp said on Friday the U.S. International Trade Commission is investigating rival LG Electronics following its complaint alleging LG infringed on Whirlpool refrigerator patents.

Read More

Wal-Mart, Target under RFID patent attack

(C/Net) Behind the scenes, Wal-Mart and Target use radio-frequency identification tracking systems to help them keep their shelves stocked, but that method could face new complications if an ongoing patent lawsuit doesn't go their way.

Read More

Clear Winners Unlikely In Motorola -- RIM Patent Fight

(InformationWeek) As with most information-technology patent disputes, there are few clear winners and some obvious losers in the current spat between BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion and Motorola.

Read More

Federal Court To Reconsider Software Patent Issue

(InformationWeek) A federal court is considering the definition of a "business method" patent as part of an appeals process that could affect the ongoing controversy over software patents.

Read More

Analysts Say Patent Reform Will Harm Biotech, Add Costs

(BIO) Certain controversial elements of the patent 'reform' legislation pending before the Congress would sharply increase patent costs and risks, undermining innovation with potentially serious consequences for the U.S. economy, concluded two independent experts in a new analysis released today by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO).

Read More

Appellate Court in the Netherlands Upholds Basic Lipitor Patent, Prevents Launch of Ranbaxy Product before November 2011

(Forbes) Pfizer Inc said today that the Court of Appeal of The Hague in the Netherlands has ruled that the basic patent covering atorvastatin - the active ingredient in Lipitor - would be infringed by a competitor product from generics manufacturer Ranbaxy. The decision prevents Ranbaxy from launching its drug before Lipitor's basic patent (EP 247,633) expires in November 2011.

Read More

More Bad News at Tax Time

(BusinessWeek) While I have previously defended software patents on this very site, I come now to bury them. It's not because I've changed my mind. It's that the latest nemesis is so imposing, many would give up the fight before it starts.

Read More

Patent is music to firm's ears

(Financial Post) Think you have the next great technology solution to help save a particular industry? You better make sure you firm up the rights to your innovation if you don't want end up as a one-hit wonder.

Read More

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About Us...
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We specialize in finding cost-effective solutions to meet the needs of individual patent departments. To find out more information, please visit us at firsttofile.com

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