Week 6
- Ebay agreed to settle their patent dispute with MercExchange. Ebay told investors that it would buy MercExchange's patents an that they would dismiss all claims and appeals dealing with the lawsuit filed a few years ago. MerExchange had claimed that they had the credit for the "Buy It Now" feature, claiming that eBay infringed on three of its patents. Ebay tried to fight this but it would of costed the company about $30 million. Ebay claimed that there was no infringement on MerExchange's patents but it decided that it will buy their patents. The settlement terms are confidential.
This case relates directly to class because we read this case for one of our classes. We discussed this case with our visiting professor, Professor Baron, whom is also a lawyer in Chicago. We read through this case and further discussed it in class talking about various aspects of it.
- Cisco Systems Inc. and American Innovation are facing a large number of lawsuits and damages in the patent area. They claim that they are being held captive by patent trolls, or patent holding companies. These companies obtain patents on small parts of technology in order to file lawsuits. This has changed the playing field for the IT market over the last 10 years. The large companies usually held large portfolios of patents and traded them with others. The tech giants are trying to pass the Patent Reform Act, that could limit damages in patent lawsuits.
We have been discussing patent laws in our classes. We have discussed how the situation with patents can be very complex and that what things/items can actually be patented. That in order to obtain a patent a person must invent or discover something new and useful or that it must be a new and useful innovation.
- Steve Jobs told the public at the unveiling of the iPhone at Mac World that it was backed by 200 patents. However, there has been an attack of lawsuits aimed at the iPhone. They have sued Apple for the iPhone's touch screen, its virtual keyboard, and its visual voicemail and know Romek Fig has sued for the caller ID feature. He states that it infringes on his patent that describes "an automatic incoming telephone call number display system for detecting an incoming call and identifying the party associated with the incoming call number". Figa insists that Apple is making a profit on his patent.
Patent laws is what we have been discussing in class and we have seen how complex they can be. We have discussed what can and cannot be patented. For example, one cannot patent a mere idea or suggestion.