Posts Tagged: "software patents"

The Newest Patent Litigation Venue: District of Amazon Federal Court

In yet another pathetic result of the U.S. government crashing the patent system, Amazon announces it is a patent infringement court. I guess we can call it the District of Amazon Federal Court (DAFC). They claim a cheaper, faster alternative to traditional patent lawsuits. Ring a bell?  The last time I heard that we got the PTAB. This irony is judiciously served. First, Amazon used the patent system to differentiate themselves from their competitors with the one-click patent, thus gaining market share. Then the U.S. government crashed the patent system so that no small inventor or startup could challenge Amazon with improved technologies. With no challengers, Amazon monopolized.  

Patent Trends Study Part Two: IoT Industry

In yesterday’s article, we introduced our patent-trends study (performed in a collaboration between Kilpatrick Townsend and GreyB Services) and provided high-level data across industries. Today’s article pertains to the Internet of Things (IoT) industry. With the prevalence of WiFi, cellular modems and devices configured for short-range connections, IoT systems are becoming all the more ubiquitous and exciting. No matter how powerful and sophisticated a single device is, its efficiency and usefulness will very often remain capped if it cannot “talk” to other devices. Only through these communications can the device gain a more comprehensive view (e.g., corresponding to where users are, what computations or controls may be helpful, what computations or actions other devices are already performing or coordinating). Thus, we can begin to start thinking about specifications (e.g., efficiency, speed, memory, accuracy) of a device and instead think about specifications of a system. This presents a large number of important use cases.

Google v. Oracle and the Battle to Protect Software Via Copyright

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court invited the United States Solicitor General to file a brief expressing its views in the long-running case of Google LLC v. Oracle America Inc. The case highlights the complexities of protecting software via IP rights. As with patents, the courts often struggle to apply copyright concepts to software, leaving companies bleeding time and resources. Determining what can be protected and what can’t be is complex—even for appellate courts.“ These software piracy cases are convoluted because there can be both literal and nonliteral copying, as shown by the Google v. Oracle case,” said Brian Darville, chair of the trademark and copyright practice group at Oblon. “It’s critical for companies to legally safeguard their software and ensure they’re not infringing on their competitors.”

Cray Wins Summary Judgment Against Raytheon Following Successful Venue Transfer Post-TC Heartland

On April 15, U.S. District Judge William Conley of the Western District of Wisconsin issued an opinion and order in Raytheon Company v. Cray, Inc. granting summary judgment of non-infringement to defendant Cray on two supercomputer patents that had been asserted by Raytheon. The order is the likely conclusion to a case that became an important part of the debate on proper venue in patent cases after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in TC Heartland, and aspects of how this case played out after venue was transferred point to the importance of that particular decision on U.S. patent litigation.

Reactions Roll in On Congress’s Proposed 101 Framework: ‘The Right Approach’ or ‘A Swing and a Miss’?

Yesterday, members of congress announced in a press release a proposed framework to fix patent eligibility law in the United States.Reactions to the framework were mixed. While many are delighted that the issue seems to be getting real attention on Capitol Hill, others are skeptical of some of the proposals. For example, Russ Slifer, former Deputy Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), described the framework as “a big swing and a miss.” Having attended the meeting on the Hill yesterday in which the framework was released and discussed prior to being circulated to the public, Todd Dickinson of Polsinelli, and the former USPTO Director, said that he can understand how those seeing the proposal without having taken part in the dialogue might be alarmed. “There are still some big questions to answer, but I left the meeting encouraged by the momentum,” Dickinson told IPWatchdog. The discussion, which he described as decidedly “more lawyerly” than previous meetings on the topic, included staffers for both the House and Senate, and from both political parties, which “is a good sign that there is a continued intention to do something,” he said.