Apple and Google/Android Suffer the Wrath of intellectual Monopolies
- Dr. Roy Schestowitz
- 2012-04-14 09:36:56 UTC
- Modified: 2012-04-14 09:36:56 UTC
Summary: A quick roundup of legal news about the market leaders in mobile and tablets
Pamela Jones is back to
tracking the SCOracle case on a more permanent basis (when she does not help
Apple against Psystar and
patent trolls). Jones is
rightly concerned that copyright law may be putting programming languages in danger, so it's not just a matter of patents anymore. Both Android and iOS are impacted by the patent troll she's tracking and
yet another patent troll is harming both sides:
PATENT TROLL Touchscreen Gestures has claimed that Apple's Iphone and Ipad infringe its touchscreen patents.
Touchscreen Gestures seems to be nothing more than a shell company that has ownership of a number of patents that cover screen tapping and dragging gestures. The firm has also claimed that Samsung and Research in Motion (RIM) infringe its patents with their respective tablets.
In other news,
Apple gets a taste of its own medicine in Europe. As one reporter puts it:
German Court Upheld Ban On iCloud, MobileMe
Apple needed to get a taste of its own medicine. The Wall Street Journal reports that a regional court in Mannheim (Germany) has upheld its ruling to ban Apple's iCloud and MobileMe services. Motorola had accused Apple of infringing upon its patent EP0847654. The ban was enforced after the February ruling. Apple had appealed the courts decision challenging the validity of Motorola patent.
Apple and Android don't get along because the
spiritual leader of Apple declared war, but both share some similar problems. They really should work
together against software patenting. What we meanwhile are left with is a system which is unfriendly to competition and innovation. Intellectual monopolies are of no benefit to society. They help some of the biggest corporations gain more power over society.
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Comments
Michael
2012-04-15 04:15:15
Big "if" there, just like there is a big "if" in if Android is plagiarizing iOS. *IF* the accusations against Apple or Google are true, though, then they should face penalties and the like.
Would love to see comments of equal fairness coming from you, Roy.
mcinsand
2012-04-16 23:40:00
For the umpteenth time, if you're a US citizen, write your senators and congresspeople to have patents restricted to the physical world!
Michael
2012-04-16 23:55:04
If you want patents restricted to physical property, what mechanism do you want in place to work against the plagiarism of IP, such as what Samsung did to Apple? Or do you think plagiarism is OK, at least in terms of IP?