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Russian Slaps ™ On ;-)

Entrepreneur seeks to nudge businesses into paying $$$ for use of emoticon

(Newser) - A Russian businessman says he has been granted the trademark for the ;-) emoticon and will start charging for its use, the BBC reports. The entrepreneur, president of the Superfone mobile phone advertising company, doesn't plan to go after individual users but intends to ask corporations to pay for a... More »

Startup Goes After Nintendo Over Patents

It claims the Wii uses stolen motion-sensing technology

(Newser) - A Maryland tech firm claims that Nintendo stole some of its technology for the popular Wii console, the Wall Street Journal reports. Hillcrest Laboratories filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission, alleging that Nintendo infringed on patents for motion-sensing technology. It wants to ban Wii consoles from being... More »

Tech Giants Join Forces Against 'Patent Trolls'

Fear of lawsuits behind group effort to snap up intellectual property

(Newser) - Some of tech's biggest players are banding together to corner the market on patents key to their various businesses, the Wall Street Journal reports. Companies like Google and Verizon are afraid of being held hostage by small players with a claim on key bits of intellectual property, and wary of... More »

Apple Eyes Solar-Powered Gadgets

iPods and iPhones could soon harness sun's power with new patent

(Newser) - Apple is seeking a different kind of moment in the sun, reports Forbes, as the behemoth has filed a patent that would integrate solar cells with its iPods and iPhones. The technology would boost the amount of area available for cells, paving the way for truly mobile gadgets free totally... More »

Gibson Sues Over Guitar Hero

It wants retailers to stop selling game, claims patent infringement

(Newser) - Gibson Guitar has sued Guitar Hero retailers, saying the Activision video games infringe on a patent it holds for a virtual-reality concert. The federal suit seeks to stop Wal-Mart, Target, Kmart, Amazon, GameStop, and Toys "R" Us from selling the games, reports AP. But Activision is fighting back—earlier... More »

Stocks Tumble as Bayer Loses Patent for Contraceptive

Generic birth control pill could soon steal market

(Newser) - Bayer shares tumbled to a 12-month low yesterday after a US judge ended the pharmaceutical giant's patent on Yasmin, the company’s top-selling birth control pill. The ruling means rival Barr Pharmaceuticals may introduce a lower-priced generic version of Yasmin in the next few months, Bloomberg reports.  More »

EBay Finally Settles Patent Suit

Will buy three patents as part of agreement with MercExchange

(Newser) - After years of legal battling that escalated to the Supreme Court, eBay has settled a patent-infringement lawsuit by e-commerce technology company MercExchange. The companies aren’t revealing the financial terms, but eBay will buy the three patents that led to the suit. The auction giant said the agreement won’t... More »

Still Clicking, Lego Turns 50

Addictive bricks survive video game threat to mark a half-century as a timeless hit

(Newser) - When a Dane filed a patent for interlocking toy bricks 50 years ago yesterday, it began a revolution that has produced enough Legos to stretch to the moon 10 times over, writes Time. The toy, named Forbes' "Toy of the Century" in 1999, survived stiff competition from higher-tech playthings... More »

Corporations Share Green Tech Patents

IBM, Nokia, Sony and Pitney-Bowes join the new Eco-patent Commons

(Newser) - IBM tops the list of companies donating patents to a group that aims to help businesses produce greener products by sharing eco-friendly technology. Big Blue has promised 27 patents to the Eco-patent Commons; Nokia, Sony and mail equipment maker Pitney-Bowes will also donate, reports PC World. Shared patents will be... More »

Google Fights Patent Theft Charges

Northeastern U and partner claim company stole search method

(Newser) - Google denies allegations that it is infringing on a patent held jointly by Northeastern University and a Massachussetts company for an Internet search method, and is countersuing to invalidate the patent, PC World reports. NU and its partner claim Google is infringing a patent they were granted for a distributed... More »

Tough Call: Book Says Bell Ripped Off Rival

Phone inventor likely copied competitor's patent application

(Newser) - Telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell ripped off the idea from his rival Elisha Gray, a new book claims. In The Telephone Gambit: Chasing Alexander Graham Bell's Secret, journalist Seth Shulman uncovers evidence that Bell took a sneak peek at Gray's patent documents with the help of his lawyers and a... More »

Apple, AT&T Targets of $360M iPhone Lawsuit

Patent company says it owns 'Visual Voice'

(Newser) - Add one to the number of lawsuits Apple’s iPhone has been hit with. Klausner Technologies yesterday said it filed a $360 million suit against Apple and AT&T for infringing on its patents for “Visual Voicemail,” Reuters reports. The sleek mobile phone’s highly touted function  allows... More »

Legal Woes Haunt Qualcomm

Battles with Nokia and Broadcom take toll on stock despite record results

(Newser) - Qualcomm reported record sales and profits for its 2007 fiscal year, but if its executives thought that would please a jittery Wall Street, they were wrong, as shares fell in after hours trading. The Financial Times reports the company is in a long-running and costly multinational legal battle with Nokia,... More »

Making Money: Patent Pending

IBM wants to patent an idea about its patents, which is, well, patently contrary

(Newser) - Big Blue is seeing green in a recent patent filing. IBM, which holds more patents than any company in the world and reaps more than $1 billion in royalties annually, says it wants to make it easier for small companies to license its ideas on a “floating privilege basis.... More »

Amazon May Lose ‘1-Click’ Patent

Angry customer started campaign; online seller will get re-draft try

(Newser) - Amazon may be one patent poorer after the US Patent Office decimated its claim to the “1-Click” shopping cart emblem yesterday—throwing into question a 1999 infringement settlement with Barnes & Noble. The online orderer will have a chance to re-write its application, Ars Technica reports, but stands to... More »

Vonage Shares Soar 76% on Sprint Deal

$80M patent settlement licenses tech, curtails rising legal costs

(Newser) - Vonage shares saw their biggest-ever bump today, after the company announced it has settled its patent lawsuit with Sprint for $80 million. In addition to cutting its legal losses, Vonage gains a license to use the disputed tech. “It's good in that things could have gotten worse,” one... More »

Vonage Guilty in Sprint Patent Suit

Net phone company faces second huge judgment against it this year

(Newser) - Vonage was found guilty of illegally using Sprint’s Internet phone patents, and now owes the carrier $69.5 million in damages, according to Dow Jones Newswires. More worrisome for Vonage is that an injunction could soon bar it from offering Net-based phone service altogether. More »

Supreme Court Slays Patent Trolls

Three recent decisions clamp down on frivolous patents and lawsuits

(Newser) - Technology Review looks at three recent Supreme Court decisions—taken together, "historic"—that crack down on "patent trolls," unscrupulous companies that file thousands of patents and just as many lawsuits, aggressively hunting for license fees. The new rulings make it harder to launch these licensing campaigns,... More »

Kodak Sets Sights on Flashless Future

New low-light sensor could snap flagging company out of slump

(Newser) - Kodak showed off a new technology today that enables digital cameras to capture clearer pictures in low light—without a flash. Kodak revealed the innovation just as the enduring photography company finishes up its long and costly transformation to digital and begins to tap into its valuable portfolio of patents. More »

Court Relaxes Patent Test

Tech companies applaud broader guidelines for "obviousness"

(Newser) - Tech companies are thrilled with a Supreme Court ruling yesterday that relaxed the "obviousness" test for patents—the standard for deciding when a combination of existing elements deserves patent protection. No longer will Silicon Valley giants have to wrangle with patent "trolls"—people who anticipate minute improvements... More »

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