patents in action

[Holger Blasum <holgerlists@blasum.net>]

Hello list,

today I got two mails concerning software patents in action:

First one from Roderick Klein,

>http://www.youmaybenext.com/         ;
>
>http://www.youmaybenext.com/updated803.html
>Een quote:
>
>It's been roughly one year ago a company called PanIP, LLC started           
>suing small businesses from around the country claiming that their
>ordinary, off-the-shelf e-commerce web sites infringed two patents
>that
>PanIP owns. Under PanIP's theory, virtually every business in the            
>   
>United States that sells products using the Internet would be liable
>to
>PanIP for patent infringement, and could be required to pay a
>royalty.
>This web site (and subsequently the PanIP Group Defense Fund) was
>formed to inform the business community about PanIP's actions and to     
>stop these abusive lawsuits. Well, a lot has happened in the last
>six
>months and I wanted to update you on the status of our efforts to
>stop
>PanIP, and ask for your continued support.
>
>Of course people will say that the system has worked (read the rest
>about patent review and the law suite against panip)
>
>The company it self:
>
>http://www.panip.com/
>
>And there info on licensing:
>
>http://www.panip.com/licensing.htm
>Currently, a non-exclusive lifetime license to the PanIP patent   
>portfolio is available for a very reasonable fee.  Pursuant to the     
>lifetime license, PanIP will grant to the licensee a nonexclusive,           
>   
>fully paid-up, irrevocable, indivisible, worldwide license under the   
>PanIP Patent Portfolio.
>
>Search:
>Via this link:
>http://www.youmaybenext.com/news.html
>
>I ended up
>here:
>http://archive.infoworld.com/articles/hn/xml/02/05/15/020515hnpangea.xml
>
>
>PanIP is seeking a one-time $30,000 from each company for a license
>on
>both patents for as long as they are valid, she said. That payment
>would also cover a patent that PanIP claims to have pending that
>covers
>"very similar technology and may bear on these retailers," Walker
>added.
>
>What the heck  ? "for a very reasonable fee".                     
>For a complete rubish patent you must pay 30.000 dollars ?             
>Only the name of the company,  why don't they call them self Maffia
>inc         
>:-)
>Yes and no license rates on there website, you must first contact
>them
>and then on the phone:
> "And what is your company name and website address
>sir"..... (2 minutes later)... "Oke that will 30.000 dollar".
>And your toast (just by informing)....
>
>And what an innovative patent :-)
>A different amount is mentioned here:
>http://www.youmaybenext.com/fromtim.html
>had to make a decision. Pay them the $5000 they were asking for
>something I didn?t think they had a right to, or Fight Back!          
>
>http://www.panip.com/litigation.htm
>A list of lawsuites running....
>(To scare people of course).
>
>I asked Tim Beere from the website http://www.youmaybenext.com/   ;
>
>http://www.youmaybenext.com/updated803.html
>
>In July, we received notice that the PTO has accepted our request
>for 
>reexamination and agrees that we have raised "a substantial new
>question of patentability" as to the claims of the first of PanIP's
>patents. Thus, this patent will now be reexamined in its entirety
>and
>we are confident that it will be invalidated. We anticipate a
>similar
>finding with respect to the second PanIP patent shortly.
>
>What is ment by this ? If the USPTO also comments about
>patentability
>in genereal of software and business idea's...
>
>As I said in Brussels: software patent= license to sue         
>
>Roderick Klein
>Mensys

second one from Bernard Lang:

>The French company Getris-Image (from Grenoble, France) started
>exporting its software in the USA.  It was then sued for
>infringement
>over 4 patents and went bankrupt because of litigation costs.            
>
>In another law suit, the 4 patents were cancelled.  So this company          
>   
>died for no good reason.
>
>Is that what we want to import in Europe.
>
>By the way, the comany that sued was just an IP company, not
>producing    
>any software, but living of the back of true entrepreneurs.  It was
>a
>british company.


Bernard




-- 
Holger Blasum 
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