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Apple Pays $25 Million in Settlement Over Cover Flow, Time Machine Patents

Cartoonkid said:
Maybe not trolls, but patent hoarders, and the only way they make money is by suing others.

Not saying they aren't justified since they own the patent. It's just a slimy business model.
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The fact that it's an unethical and "slimy" business model basically means they're not justified. If there was any real justice, the patent system would be trashed and copyright law would be seriously revised. Both systems have, thanks to capitalist lobbying, turned from their core missions so dramatically to become systems to accomplish exactly the opposite of their core missions. They now stifle invention and only protect the interests of huge wealthy non-human, non-individual, corporate entities. Thank you, corporate personhood.
 
MalcolmTucker said:
I remember when they had an ad where an Apple I had caught on fire. Instead of throwing it out, (or having a Genius say the AppleCare doesnt cover that), Apple repaired it. Good luck getting similar service today!

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Apple didn't repair the computer, Cincinnati Computer Store did. And it wasn't even really a repair, the computer still worked but the case had cosmetic damage. They just put the innards in a new case. The ad also doesn't say that the new case was free to the user, it simply promotes that there are thousands of dealers and service centres if something goes wrong.
 
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Smith288 said:
So if I came up with a great idea but not enough capital to develop it, I shouldn't be able to "hoard" that intellectual property? Really? Companies should be able to come and take it without licensing it? Because, Apple? Please.
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No, you shouldn't be able to hoard ideas and no, your ideas shouldn't be taken without compensation by powerful entities. But the thing is, the definition of "invention" and "novel idea" has become so diluted by the computer industry as to be meaningless. Most patents filed are junk. The patent office knew better and initially refused to accept software patents, but corporate lobbying won over logic and rational thinking.

Individual inventors aren't hoarding inventions. Patent trolls are. Their entire business model is in buying up patents from people and businesses, rather than funding development of those "inventions", and then making money by threats ("you must license that from us or be sued") and suing. It is antisocial by definition and is destructive to society.
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Dwalls90 said:
Software patents truly are just stupid. No one should be able to patent any of these things, including SWIPE TO UNLOCK.
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I thought that was pretty novel. After the last six years of watching patent trolling, I've decided it's not near novel enough to make the patent system's existence acceptable. The patent system, as it is today, is entirely destructive and needs to be either killed or razed and recreated from scratch with solid foundations (stringent and specific definitions) and immunity to corporate lobbying.
 
Next thing we will hear is a apple fruit company suing apple for Apple logo.

Or someone suing Apple for finder's logo...that Mac face because this person looks like that Mac face.
 
Kabeyun said:
Cute. But I'd add "yet." There's often a long lag between patent and product. Probably longer if it's a material and not a device. It was over five years between Touch ID patents and the iPhone 5S. Apple has at least two product patents using liquidmetal. We'll see what they make. How much time would you give Apple to make a product using liquidmetal? Since six years is unfair, how about five? Three?

....
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Apple made the liquid metal deal in 2010, so 6 years has past already.
 
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Undivided1 said:
Unless apple does it. Then its called protectiong intellectual property :)
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I don't think you understand the difference between a company that works hard to develop unique products and features to bring new products to market and/or enhance their existing products and services, and a company who just buys up patents sitting around gathering dust do extort money from other companies who actually make something.

Having said that it looks like Network-1 served a purpose here for the original patent holders. They had worked for years to try to monetize their patents via a lawsuit with Apple. Obviously the overturning of the judgment was probably financially devastating to them. Network-1 bought the rights to the patents and ended up getting some money from Apple by being able to show a formidable opponent. .

When I have time I want to read why the judgment was overturned.
 
rdlink said:
I don't think you understand the difference between a company that works hard to develop unique products and features to bring new products to market and/or enhance their existing products and services, and a company who just buys up patents sitting around gathering dust do extort money from other companies who actually make something.

Having said that it looks like Network-1 served a purpose here for the original patent holders. They had worked for years to try to monetize their patents via a lawsuit with Apple. Obviously the overturning of the judgment was probably financially devastating to them. Network-1 bought the rights to the patents and ended up getting some money from Apple by being able to show a formidable opponent. .

When I have time I want to read why the judgment was overturned.
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Yup. This is clearly way more legitimate than almost all of the other patent trolling that goes on.
 
In the world of Macrumors:
Apple buys patents and sues anyone for using them without licensing = good
Other company buys patents and sues Apple for using them without licensing = bad

But only one of them is called a troll.... o_O
 
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Undivided1 said:
Unless apple does it. Then its called protectiong intellectual property :)
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utter nonsense. Apple is a practicing entity with actual products. products that were designed, developed, built. not at all the same as non practicing entities that come up with vague ideas then sue others over them.
 
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So this really happens??? For a while I thought you guys were talking sorta "tongue in cheek"... Are you saying you know of examples of these "patent trolling " companies that exist to buy patents, then wait for a legit company to use them without permission, then sue the legit company?

I've been in the business world a long time and haven't heard of this practice. Can you provide some substantiation for this claim.. A particular case I can read about when such a "troll" company accomplished this - who weren't, themselves, the creators of any intellectual property or widget/feature design?
 
MacRumors said:



Apple will pay $25 million to settle a patent lawsuit with Network-1 Technologies' subsidiary Mirror World Technologies and license its patents, the companies announced today. The patent (No. 6,006,227) dates back to 1999, covering a system that stores documents in a stream ordered chronologically, similar to Apple's Cover Flow or Time Machine.

timemachine.png
The technologies described in the patent were developed from the work of Yale University computer scientist Professor David Gelernter and his then-graduate student Dr. Eric Freeman in 1996. They then founded Mirror Worlds LLC, which began a long-running legal fight with Apple over the patent. In 2010, Apple was hit with a $625 million judgment over the patent. A year later, Apple won a reversal of the decision and the judge closed the case in Apple's favor.

In 2013, Mirror Worlds was purchased by Network-1 and the company acquired Mirror World's patents. Network-1 describes itself as a company "engaged in the development, licensing and protection of its intellectual property and proprietary technologies." Last year, the company also reached a settlement with Microsoft for $4.6 million over the same patent.

Article Link: Apple Pays $25 Million in Settlement Over Cover Flow, Time Machine Patents
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Does Apple steal patents without apparent scruple and then pay up only when forced to by the law ?
What does this make us believe about Apple and its corporate ethos ?
Is this an undignified example of "might is right" or, as in Apples's case, thinks it is ?
Should we be associating ourselves with Apple at all ?
Is this "The American Way" ?
 
diipii said:
Does Apple steal patents without apparent scruple and then pay up only when forced to by the law ?
What does this make us believe about Apple and its corporate ethos ?
Is this an undignified example of "might is right" or, as in Apples's case, thinks it is ?
Should we be associating ourselves with Apple at all ?
Is this "The American Way" ?
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Unfortunately this is the American way. But Apple is not breaking the law, they are using it In the same way other companies do. If you disassociate yourself from every company that does this you would live in an empty house.
 
Kabeyun said:
And Apple Records sued Apple Computers. ...
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Apple Corps sued Apple computers after Steve promised not to get into the music business and then iTunes store got released.

Apple is infamous for ripping people off. Look up "sosumi" (so sue me). That's basically Apple's attitude towards stealing trademarks, patents and ideas.
 
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Why don't companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, etc... just purchase companies like this in the first place. Instead Patent trolls buy up these companies and patents for nearly nothing with the sole purpose of suing Companies like Apple. They have no intention of making a product that uses the patent and don't even have people working there with the knowledge of how to use the patent.
 
Angus576 said:
Why don't companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, etc... just purchase companies like this in the first place. Instead Patent trolls buy up these companies and patents for nearly nothing with the sole purpose of suing Companies like Apple. They have no intention of making a product that uses the patent and don't even have people working there with the knowledge of how to use the patent.
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I still need to see substantive proof of this statement. Name one such company and cite me an situation where it proves the point you're making.
 
slapppy said:
Seems like Apple has been busy copying rather than inventing or being creative these days. Sad isn't it?
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Apple bought coverflow off of some firm or another back in the day. I've always hated CoverFlow myself <shrug>.

No, it's not sad, people like you are sad.
 
Angus576 said:
Why don't companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, etc... just purchase companies like this in the first place. Instead Patent trolls buy up these companies and patents for nearly nothing with the sole purpose of suing Companies like Apple. They have no intention of making a product that uses the patent and don't even have people working there with the knowledge of how to use the patent.
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They are just playing the game by the rules, like everyone else.

We need proper patent reform, one that will not allow me to file for thousands of patents to cover one idea properly or thousands of patents to introduce thousands of ides. But also Apple should not be allowed to apply for those thousand patents either.

The worst form of patent reform, the one megas are pushing for, is mass production and adoption of idea in order to be valid. That is not the solution.

We need depth, more depth at which patents are really actual ideas and improvements instead of light twist on something that is already there (like Apples swipe to unlock) and in domain of sci-fi (which is just a waste of time in patent offices). And look and feel design patents need to disappear.
 
Angus576 said:
... They have no intention of making a product that uses the patent and don't even have people working there with the knowledge of how to use the patent.
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People own cars and most don't know how they work. The problem isn't patent trolls.

The problems IMO are patents are being granted for trivial things, specifically all software patents. Software patents don't require source code. That means the person that invented it doesn't even have to be a programmer or know how computers work.

Another problem is the the patent examiner gets paid more if he grants more patents. Do you know the punishment for making a mistake and granting something you shouldn't? Nothing cause it will be settled in court. The lawyers get money, court employees are working, people have jobs, the patent owner can sell to patent trolls. Everyone gets paid.
 
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