Posts in IP News

Starting January 15, 2014, some EFS-Web and Private PAIR users experienced issues when authenticating to the system… The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank on March 31, 2014.  This case is being briefed on the merits right now, and Trading Technologies is looking for parties interested in sighing onto their brief in support of software patents… South Florida Inventor Expo – This annual event will include programming that will help inventors learn how others promote their products… Ray Millien joins GE Healthcare as Senior IP Counsel.

It seems that this article caught the attention of Newegg’s Chief Legal Officer, Lee Cheng, who proceeded to contact me through LinkedIn and berate me in bizarre fashion throughout the day yesterday… Cheng first reached out to me with a simple message: “You are hilarious.” I responded: “Thanks for reading IPWatchdog.com. I hope you learn something.” And then I got a real look into the top legal mind of Newegg. The only word I can use to describe Cheng, at least based on this exchange, is schizophrenic. He went from telling me I was “a smart guy ” that he wanted to meet to someone who was nothing more than an incompetent patsy on the patent troll payroll. This occurred over the span of only several e-mails.

Today’s featured patent application discusses a system of making mobile device communication more effective between parties. This application would protect a system that can analyze a device owner’s communication habits and then suggest to other people whether they’ll have a better chance reaching a contact through a phone call or a text. Other patent applications we discovered today include a system of using wireless devices to communicate with fitness equipment during a workout, as well as methods of estimating a crowd size by surveying mobile devices in the vicinity. Issued patents are a huge part of our focus here at IPWatchdog, and it intrigues us that AT&T, usually involved with telephone systems and other forms of communications innovations, would be so interested in IPTV and television services. But a trio of patents included here suggest AT&T is itself intrigued with innovations in the delivery of TV. We also discuss a patent used to track media content shared over peer-to-peer and ad-hoc networks as well as improvements to IT security infrastructures that improves the accuracy of security data.

MPHJ employed a strategy of targeting small and medium-sized businesses, which in and of itself is not legally problematic. The fact that MPHJ acquired patents of dubious validity is interesting, but again, patents are presumed valid, so that is not terribly probative either. The problem with the MPHJ strategy is that it was deceptive. They sent out letters to a large number of small businesses in an effort to extract small, nuisance-value license payments from them. Indeed, some patent trolls seek far less than even a fair nuisance-value, asking for $500 or $1,000. It is this type of behavior that is the hallmark of a patent troll. The mere fact that one has acquired patents and seeks to license them is in and of itself irrelevant because that activity is completely legal. In the letters sent by MPHJ hundreds of New York businesses were told that it was “likely” that they were infringing MPHJ patents and, therefore, needed to take a patent license. By saying that they were “likely” infringing an impression was created that MPHJ had conducted at least some kind of individualized analysis of the targeted company’s business. But MPHJ did no investigation, choosing merely sent out form letters in bulk to companies of a certain size and industry classification.

Patents and patent reform has been in the news, even the popular press, on an increasing basis. The issue of patents generally and patent litigation specifically has been the subject of intense debate over the last 8 years. Congress passed the America Invents Act (AIA) in 2011, with the bill being signed into law by President Obama on September 16, 2011. The overhaul of U.S. patent law was extraordinary, but not all of the parties involved were happy. Some thought the law went too far in some ways, others thought the law did not go far enough. Despite the AIA being the most significant change to patent laws since at least 1952, Congress is considering further reforms again, with the House of Representatives already passing the Innovation Act (HR 3309). Companion legislation in the Senate is likely to move forward during Q1 2014.

Everyone who has objectively looked at the case knows that the Federal Circuit made a terrible mistake, but not that won’t be corrected and a serial patent infringer that has made a business practice of ignoring patent rights gets to use the Soverain technology for free. And just when you think things couldn’t get more strange, Newegg makes a bizarre comment with misogynistic undertones. “The witch is dead, hurray,” said Lee Cheng, Newegg’s Chief Legal Officer. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that Cheng is calling Wolanyk a witch. Of course he will denied such a charge and he and his supporters will proclaim their innocence. But this is no different than liberals working “weight” into every comment or tweet they make about New Jersey Governor Chris Christie. This type of not so subtle dig is what those familiar with Newegg have come to expect. It is this juvenile, over the top, holier-than-thou attitude that Newegg personifies.

Although Ford, General Motors, Mercedes and others brought innovations to share with the crowds at CES, Audi seemed to be a big winner of popular appeal, to judge by news reports about vehicular developments at the convention. Audi’s Sport Quattro Laserlight concept car features the manufacturer’s driverless technology as well as a hybrid V8 engine that helps the car reach 90 miles per gallon of gas. True to the ‘Laserlight’ name, this Audi model uses laser headlights that can illuminate the road for one-third of a mile in front of the car.

Although the first Patent Act was enacted in 1790, it was not until some 52 years later that the US patent laws were modified to allow for the patenting of ornamental designs. In 1842 a statute was passed to provide for, among other things, the grant of patents for any new and original: (1) design for a manufacture; (2) design for printing on fabrics; (3) bust or statue; (4) impression to be place on an article of manufacture; or (5) shape or configuration of any article of manufacture. Subsequently, in 1902, the design patent statute was amended to define the allowable subject matter simply as “any new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture.’’ This language mimicked the 1887 modifications to the Patent Act relative to infringement, and still closely represents the current law regarding patentability of designs.

What is clear every time we look at Qualcomm is that the company’s innovation profile defies easy characterization because Qualcomm simply innovates, and innovates and innovates. For example, today we begin looking at a patent application that could very well bring the value of having a massive scope of retail products available for purchase online directly into brick-and-mortar stores. This computing system would allow a store to detect that a shopper is comparing prices online through a device and then provide a discount offer that could entice the customer into buying the item in the store. Then we briefly discuss other interesting patent applications that relate to a mobile video terminal that could assist in patient physical therapy, as well as a system of reducing a device’s processor power to control internal temperature.

This is likely a signal of more patent infringement lawsuits yet to come in the growing patent battle by proxy between Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), Samsung, HTC (TPE: 2498) and the companies behind Rockstar, which is a group created by Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT), BlackBerry Ltd.(NASDAQ: BBRY), Ericsson AB and Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) to acquire patents from Nortel Networks Corp. in 2011.

Morrison & Foerster recently announced the election of 10 lawyers to the firm’s partnership, effective January 1, 2014. The group, comprised of five women and five men, includes four litigators, four dealmakers, a patent lawyer and an environmental lawyer. The three IP partners are Brian Ho, Wendy Ray and Aaron Rubin.

‘With the U.S. patent expiration of Cymbalta last December and that of Evista coming in March, we expect 2014 to be the most financially challenging year of Lilly’s current period of patent expirations,’ said Derica Rice, Lilly executive vice president, global services and chief financial officer. ‘We are prepared for this challenge and are positioned to return to growth and expand margins in 2015 and beyond.’