Immersion Files Second Haptic Feedback Lawsuit Against Apple

[apolloa]

Wrong link? Clicked the article, doesn't look like they make anything.

Patent troll.

So you spent what 5 seconds reading and that was your conclusion? I would post their website but theirs no point as I'm sure you have made your mind up to ignore all the facts about them out there.

You think what ever you want, right up to when Apple loses it's case as it has a good chance of doing.

I presume you never clicked the link at all as it's in plain text:

"Immersion and its employees have worked diligently for over 20 years to invent solutions and build an ecosystem of content and playback devices that enable realistic and rich digital experiences. Touch matters, as it informs, excites and humanizes the digital world we interact with every day. Many of our licensed customers are market leaders that benefit from our innovation in touch technology," said Immersion's CEO Victor Viegas.

Yeah, obviously a company that's spent 20 years inventing things is a patent troll....

 

[M. Gustave]

Who holds the patent for "A rectangular device that performs computing tasks, and maybe other stuff"? I think it was approved by the US Patent office in 2005-ish.

Apple owes them a buttload of money. Clearly infringement.

 

[bigmac4u]

"Method and Apparatus for Providing Tactile Sensations"... mmm... Should Braille tactile writing system start paying royalties to this company too? Should my electric driller, which in a tactile sensation tell me that it is working, be included on this too? I wonder if the company who build my violin is paying royalties too, because the tactile feedback from the instrument is very important for a good performance. Stradivarius is going to be in problems now!

 

[69Mustang]

Wrong link? Clicked the article, doesn't look like they make anything.

Patent troll.

Wrong.
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"Method and Apparatus for Providing Tactile Sensations"... mmm... Should Braille tactile writing system start paying royalties to this company too? Should my electric driller, which in a tactile sensation tell me that it is working, be included on this too? I wonder if the company who build my violin is paying royalties too, because the tactile feedback from the instrument is very important for a good performance. Stradivarius is going to be in problems now!

Well, if they received a patent for that title, and not for, you know, the actual patent... nope, your quote still wouldn't make sense.

 

[Naaaaak]

Ideas for patent reform:

If you patent something, you actually have to produce something that uses the patent and profit from that within 1 year. No product, no patent. No profit, no patent. You prove this to the IRS with yearly paperwork you file and they tell the patent office if you complied or not.

You have to renew the patent once a year and pay a fixed percentage of the profits (say 5%) to the patent office to hold on to it. This will help defray the cost of all the BS that's filed.

If a corporation owns a patent, a current home address and working phone number must be posted in the public for all board members or managing members of this corporation. If they have multiple residences, all must be posted. No hiding behind shell companies.

Patent lawsuits are banned from being filed in East Texas and anywhere else where they don't have it together.

Fixed?

 

[apolloa]

Ideas for patent reform:

If you patent something, you actually have to produce something that uses the patent and profit from that within 1 year. No product, no patent. No profit, no patent.

And you've just killed every desire for any company to perform R&D and innovate and invent ever again.

 

[groovyd]

haha patents are really stretching for value these days... complete intellectual property being 'if touch then tap' lol

 

[Sedulous]

It vibrates when you touch it... aka "haptic". There likely has to be a ton of prior art that would invalidate any patent by this shady company.

 

[69Mustang]

It vibrates when you touch it... aka "haptic". There likely has to be a ton of prior art that would invalidate any patent by this shady company.

Shady? How exactly are they shady?

 

[bbbb4b]

Apple should have paid for the patent since they knew that a legitimate company would sue. This is another example of Tim Cook's Apple looking at eveything through cost reduction measures. They figured that the expected costs of a potential lawsuit were lower than the licensing and so they copied instead of doing the right thing and licensing.

If this is the case, then I can assure you that Immersion would also "figure" the same thing. They're not stupid. They're not going to make their license more expensive than it would be for someone to just take it illegally along with accompanying legal costs thereof.
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So patent on haptic feedback, a concept many are familiar with just have not executed on much. That's great. How about patent digital camera but making the patent sound obscure with something something coverting photons a electrical signal. Oh right, kodak did do that.

I didn't read it; but is the patent for the "concept" of haptic feedback, or is it for the method of triggering or delivering the "actual" haptic feedback?

 

[boccabella]

Did haptic feedback not exist before 1993? What about the old electronic table football games?

 

[sw1tcher]

Shady? How exactly are they shady?

If the company's not Apple, then (delusional) logic dictates that it must be shady.

 

[John Mcgregor]

1. Doesn't mean Apple violated their patents.
2. Doesn't mean the patents are valid or apply at all.

Being sued is not proof of guilt.

 

[ike1707]

Patent envy?

 

[John Mcgregor]

And you've just killed every desire for any company to perform R&D and innovate and invent ever again.

Beyond ridiculous.

 

[sw1tcher]

2. Doesn't mean the patents are valid

If many companies are licensing the patents and company's such as Google have been sued and lost for patent infringement, then the patents are valid.

 

[John Mcgregor]

If many companies are licensing the patents and company's such as Google have been sued and lost for patent infringement, then the patents are valid.

Yet to be determined.

 

[kevinkyoo]

Hahahahahaha people are actually defending Apple and even saying that it should buy out this company. They're even saying this company is a patent troll and suggesting the most ludicrous advices for patents. Never surprise me, mindless fanboys. Never surprise me.

 

[Brad9893]

Also, Immersion is suing Apple over the iPhone 6. Really? Could they be that stupid? Haptic feedback is only part of Apple devices with Force Touch, which the iPhone 6 certainly doesn't have. Add to that the fact they are suing AT&T and this just makes them look like morons IMO.

 

[Rocketman]

It's money. Settle. Fast.

 

[BaltimoreMediaBlog]

Yet to be determined.

Prior case law is DETERMINED. If they've already won against other companies over the same patents, the patents in question are set in stone. Unless Apple can somehow find something hundreds of other lawyers already missed, Apple will settle this case or lose.

As for why Apple doesn't just buy them? Very simple. They wouldn't allow it and Apple couldn't afford it. They have an ongoing concern and business and it's obviously earning them quite a bit of money. Apple will not be the last person they license the technology to. In fact I would go so far as to say, Apple couldn't buy them. If Apple bought them, pulling this technology away from so many other valid licensees would constitute an anti-trust violation lawsuit most likely and not one Apple could afford.

 

[Brad9893]

Hahahahahaha people are actually defending Apple and even saying that it should buy out this company. They're even saying this company is a patent troll and suggesting the most ludicrous advices for patents. Never surprise me, mindless fanboys. Never surprise me.

They are suing AT&T for a completely pointless reason. It reeks of desperation and it seems like a complete money grab; you know, patent troll behavior.

 

[gixxerfool]

Unless I'm reading this wrong, they have two lawsuits now? They essentially added more devices? Is there a reason this wouldn't have been included in the original suit? All of the devices were out when the original suit was filed.

 

[kdarling]

A quick scan of their website reveals.....well very little....who buys their products?

Well, for one, Samsung Electronics has had a license with them for a long time. In fact, they were the very first Immersion cell phone client back in 2004. They've used it in phones, CD players, you name it.

Samsung started integrating Immersion Technology's latest TouchSense haptic engine back in 2012 with the Galaxy S3. (Samsung was using linear actuators for haptics years before Apple.)

Many other major companies also have license deals. Someone gave a list earlier.

 

[drewyboy]

Stock price has nothing to do with a company's finances. Immersion has plenty of money. They ended 2015 with cash on hand and short term investments of $64.93 million. They have $0 debt and have been debt free for many years. Their gross profit margin is 97.7%, so they're highly profitable.

I'd say they're nearing hostile takeover territory. Cash balance of 65 mill, market cap of 207 mill. Licensing agreements with major companies so there's some decent revenue. If anything, they would end up costing ~150 mill. I'd say not bad for a very important technology moving forward.