You’ve probably heard of patents. But what kind of rights do they really give a person and what happens when those rights are violated? There are many kinds of patents, but we’ll specifically be taking about utility patents and the rights that flow from them. Utility patents Utility patents generally protect an invention or some […]
It used to be a hassle getting around town without a car. Even if you had a car, parking could still be a pain. But that’s no longer the case today. In today’s age of cell phones and apps, fast and cheap transportation is only a tap away. With the advent of ride sharing apps, […]
The Apple Watch function that gave rise to a lawsuit. Every year, Apple, Inc. unveils a new and innovative product that consumers go crazy over. Whether it’s the latest version of the iPhone or Macbook, there’s always another improved Apple product to buy. With each new product, Apple adds a new feature or function that […]
Big companies always have legal matters to deal with. Amazon, the famous online shopping platform has been hit with another patent infringement lawsuit. However, the latest lawsuit differs from regular patent infringement suits and involves more than your ordinary litigants. Who are the parties? In this case, the St. Regis Mohawk tribe are the […]
Two of the largest search engine marketing vendors in the United States (Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp.) will not have to pay Paid Search Engine Marketing Tools LLC for their alleged patent infringement. The Patent Trial and Appeal Board reaffirmed the consolidated ruling in Paid Search Engine Tools, Inc. v. Google Inc., Case No. 2:07-CV-0403 […]
It’s pretty apparent that nobody likes patent trolls except for the attorneys that represent them. I think the biggest problem with nonpracticing entities (NPE’s) is that they sue on cases that are not true infringement cases. At first blush this may seem unreasonable because why would you sue a case if you didn’t think […]
Heinz ketchup is being sued for patent-infringement for the flexible condiment package for ketchup, known as “Dip & Squeeze.” In a suit filed in August in the U.S. District Court in Chicago, Scott White claims he had a “flash of inspiration” after too many ketchup spills at the drive-through. He came up with the idea […]
Every day I receive litigation alerts from MaxVal. I think it’s interesting to see who’s filing patent claims in the United States.It seems that most patent litigations these days have to do with methods of using computers and Internet social networking sites. For example Blockbuster is getting sued for digitally selling movies through its Internet […]
Anoop Gopakumar and his group at MaxVal provide patent litigation alerts every day and today Anoop provided me with some interesting data on patent filings over the past year. 3963 patent litigation cases were filed 2011. I’ve posted below a detailed chart analysis of who filed those patent lawsuits. The first chart below looks at […]
Eastman Kodak Company announced that it is “exploring strategic alternatives related to its digital imaging patent portfolios, a move reflecting the current heightened market demand for intellectual property.” Does this mean they’re going to try to leverage their patent portfolio against other competitors in lawsuits? Can you say “patent troll”? Some people think that maybe […]