Yeah, just another overly broad patent ....
Patents like these should be struck down, as soon as it becomes clear that they're vague and overly broad in the context of what people are doing that the patent-holder claims "violates" them.
I've resigned myself to an understanding, though, that our current patent system is really just designed as a legal battleground for the wealthy. The more successful your company is, the more patents you stuff away into your portfolio so you can wage patent war on the other guy whenever the opportunity arises.
The fact that you can patent processes that are just virtual analogies of processes people do in real-life every day proves my point. A "1 click purchase" patent a la Amazon.com? Ridiculous on its face. Even if you "came up with the idea first" (which really means you spent the money to patent the idea first, because it's VERY doubtful nobody ever conceived of such as basic idea before you)? It's no different than the age-old concept of buying a product by selecting it with one gesture (like pointing it out with your finger). It's just translated (as all things must be) to a digital equivalent, when you want to do it on the web.
Patents like these should be struck down, as soon as it becomes clear that they're vague and overly broad in the context of what people are doing that the patent-holder claims "violates" them.
I've resigned myself to an understanding, though, that our current patent system is really just designed as a legal battleground for the wealthy. The more successful your company is, the more patents you stuff away into your portfolio so you can wage patent war on the other guy whenever the opportunity arises.
The fact that you can patent processes that are just virtual analogies of processes people do in real-life every day proves my point. A "1 click purchase" patent a la Amazon.com? Ridiculous on its face. Even if you "came up with the idea first" (which really means you spent the money to patent the idea first, because it's VERY doubtful nobody ever conceived of such as basic idea before you)? It's no different than the age-old concept of buying a product by selecting it with one gesture (like pointing it out with your finger). It's just translated (as all things must be) to a digital equivalent, when you want to do it on the web.
