According to TheStupidone, "I counted 23 companies being sued. If those 23 companies pool their resources and have a common patent defense team then the individual cost goes way down. Meanwhile the defense team just needs to delay the trial for as long as possible while doing everything in their power to have the patent invalidated"
What you are suggesting could open companies collaborating in this manner to civil & maybe even criminal RICO claims. This could be the key to finally put blood sucking thieving transnational companies in their rightful place.
One more point, the reason that inventors are moving their companies to Texas is that the court does not tolerate delaying tactics. Piracy Coalition members hate the court for this.
I expect that eastern Texas will see a huge influx of inventor-entrepreneurs as a result of attempts to stop inventors from accessing that court. Tyler Texas may become the next Silicon Valley while Silicon Valley may well wither because the Piracy Coalition pretty much owns the courts there.
This sounds like poetic justice to me.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
Eolas is perfect example of an inventor with a solid patent.
I started programming while I was still in junior high school in Algol. I can safely say that as computers have become more powerful and smaller it has become possible to implement more and more inventions in software which would have required hardware in the past.
I have done both hardware and software engineering. I have used more computer languages and dialects than I can count. I have programmed using manual compilation, assemblers, and high level languages.
Egos being what they are few programmers are willing to admit that they are on the wrong side of the Bell Curve in terms of their capabilities. Yet we all know that there are tremendous differences in programming capabilities. It is a fact that most programmers are drones doing repetitive and unchallenging work. They are not creative.
At the top of the heap you have honest to goodness inventors, the cream of the crop.
The inventor behind Eolas is Mike Doyle, a professor who invented while at the University of California. The invention and prior art have been reviewed with a fine tooth comb, and was tied up in reexamination for years. As a rule, no one licenses a patent while it is being reexamined but those who are infringing usually know they are and they do have the opportunity to actively seek out the inventor and settle up.
The Eolas patent is solid.
Eolas is suing and suing lots of companies because lots of companies are stealing and stealing on the grandest of scales. I expect that the theft amounts to billions of dollars.
Patent litigation is a direct result of disputable conduct by thieving large corporations. There would not be a market for patent enforcement companies if not for the fact that these companies intentionally infringe.
Eolas is not the bad party here. It is a company which produced inventions, taught those inventions to everyone via patents, took on the missionary job of marketing the invention.
This is what happens to many inventors. They show their invention to a number of companies who say they are not interested and then they use the invention without acquiring the rights to do so.
They count on the inventor not being able to afford justice, and that often works.
When the inventor does manage to get help enforcing their patent property rights the big company screams about trolls and there seems to be no shortage of people who buy their propaganda hook line and sinker. Of course, they are usually egged on by corporate shills, PR people operating as bloggers or posing as journalists.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
For example, I have big problems with both the term of copyright protection and the industry's constant attempts to circumvent fair use. I do not think that their property should be stolen, but I do think that they should only be able to collect a royalty once on any given work in someone's lifetime. The property right so acquired should be transferable.
There are plenty of other issues where I agree with you Mike.
But what little time I have to devote to this forum is taken up dealing with all the anti-patent drivel.
It is bad enough that I and other inventors have to fight all the disreputable transnational corporate crooks without having to deal with those who should know better promoting the patent pirates agenda.
Inventors drive new wealth creation. You cannot have what you call innovation without the work of those who actually invent something.
All businesses depend on new wealth creation, even those who are not creating new wealth themselves.
Transnational companies are doing their best to turn America's patent system into a kings sport in order to stop upstart start companies from getting the upper hand. Where else besides America can someone take on the big companies and win?
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
Since trademark claims are often used as a vehicle for Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP)we need the following:
1) Change section 230 to explicitly include save harbor against trademark claims.
2) Pass anti-SLAPP legislation in all states and perhaps a federal anti-SLAPP law.
3) Fine both the plaintiff and their attorneys for bringing SLAPP cases. Fines should be progressively larger for repeat offenders, say ten times of the second offense and a hundred times the base fine for the third. Both the second and third offense should result in sanctions for the attorney. Perhaps a three month suspension for the second offense, a one year suspension for the third, etc. would be appropriate.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
It is nice to see you thinking outside the box. Keep that up and you just might learn how to become an inventor. And then you might actually understand just how much work goes into producing an invention and the need for inventors to be fairly compensated so that they can afford to continue to invent.
With this would come an understanding that all those self professed "innovators" who build their fortunes stealing from actual inventors are scum. While not every scummy patent pirating "innovator" is a member of the Coalition for Patent Fairness & PIRACY the group most certainly has a significant percentage of the worst players.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
"The resources in this request put the United States on a path to double U.S. foreign assistance by 2015, thereby providing the resources needed to help the world’s weakest states reduce poverty, combat global health threats, develop markets, govern peacefully, and expand democracy worldwide. The FY 2010 Function 150 International Affairs request totals $53.9 billion, an increase of 9 percent over the FY 2009 total, which includes both enacted and requested emergency supplemental funding."
It seems to me that America should reallocate about $50 million of aid and block Nigerian internet traffic from entering the US (and yes, I understand that we cannot effectively block all of it).
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
"This is good news, and we really could use a national anti-SLAPP law that prevents the filing of bogus lawsuits designed to shut people up."
We do need a strong national anti-SLAPP law and we also need to address section 230 end runs using trademark claims. The law needs to contain provisions which attach significant sanctions and fines for lawyers and their clients who are found to have abused the process of law.
I suggest that the first lawsuit an attorney brings which is found to be a SLAPP should result in a $10,000 fine for both the client and the attorney. The second should result in a three month suspension of the attorneys privileges and a $100,000 fine for the client. The third and subsequent infractions should result in a one year suspension and a $1,000,000 fine for both the client and the attorney.
Attorneys should be required by law to disclose to clients past rulings and the potential downside to bringing SLAPP cases :)
Good for you Mike for backing a righteous issue. I keep telling people that you don't have your head stuck where the daylight doesn't shine all the time. It is unfortunate that your positions on patents, which are in all likelihood driven by your kissing up to clients or potential clients are so outrageous. Perhaps you will wise up at some point and recognize that so called innovators would not have any inventions without the inventors who produce them and that inventors are entitled to compensation just as he expects to be compensated by his clients.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
There is a very high incidence of ADD, dyslexia, autism and other similar issues in the inventor community. The bottom line is that it is very common for inventors to have poor written communication skills. I had this problem and it has taken me thirty years to mitigate.
I have not tried the MagicJack but have been using VOIP services for many years. I tried a number of VOIP services and eventually settled on www.BroadVoice.com. It is much more expensive than MagicJack but has many interesting features including allowing customers use of their own VOIP adapters and Asterisk PBX.
Perhaps the best way for MagicJack to handle the issue these conference services is to clearly explain the problem on their web site and offer clients the ability to use them with a prepaid account, passing the cost through to the user?
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
"It would make MS wish they were back in East Texas."
Yep, Microsoft and other members of the Coalition for Patent Fairness & Piracy would need to buy a Chinese personal lube factory.
Just like their patents, they would have quantity rather than quality.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
HARMonization is a code word for turning all patent systems into a kings sport which only serves the interests of big companies. Microsoft and other members of the Coalition for Patent Fairness (aka. the Piracy Coalition) are looking to venue shop, a venue where they might reasonably be expected to exert great influence. They would not longer need to worry about Texas courts slapping their sticky fingered paddies when they tried to abuse the process of law.
America has the best patent system in the world. All we need to do is replace upper USPTO management with people who are competent and who do not owe their souls to big business and America can start spawning new invention based businesses which are able to pay decent wages.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
It is my understanding that Bob Rines, inventor, Inventors Hall of Fame inductee, Patent Attorney & professor and the founder of Franklin Pierce Law School was the principle author of China’s patent system. I had a nice discussion with Bob Rines many years ago about this and the problem was and I believe still is that the Chinese have difficulty understanding intellectually property rights. It is reasonable to expect that their grasp of the concept will improve greatly as they come to understand the importance of such rights and as the see self interest. As this happens their courts will evolve and hopefully come to actually enforce equitable rule of law.
Mike, if your commentary was a bit less biased you could actually be in a position to reach out to those of us who actually know something about this business. Your writings would no doubt improve considerably. This is something which journalists do all the time. They cannot be experts on every topic and they understand this.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
We have kept a list of known patent pirates for a long time.
Inventors are encouraged to do due diligence on prospective licensees by reviewing legal and news data.
Generally it is wise to take inventions to companies who are not the biggest in an industry. The dominate company is virtually always fat, happy and arrogant and if they pay attention at all to the inventor it is usually just to rip them off.
The companies in second, third or fourth place usually desperately want to displace the company at the top and they are more likely to deal reputably.
This is not always the case, in that some industry segments have developed a pervasive and crooked attitude towards inventors. Examples are the auto and telecom industries. Note that both industries are suffering from the ravages of stagnation.
Even companies who start as inventors usually lose the ability to produce significant inventions over time. HP is a good example of this. Intel is another. IBM, quantity over quality.
hat happens to companies who cannot produce the important inventions they need to continue to prosper in their markets who alienate those who are producing inventions? Take a look at the auto industry.
So the answer is that yes, PIAUSA.org has been keeping score about who is and is not likely to be worth approaching.
One more point, this is something which changes depending on who is running a company and also who their patent counsel is. Some companies who were very disreputable have improved over time. Others who make have started out with the best of intentions have evolved to do incredible evil. Why is it that success virtually always leads to disreputable conduct?
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
Mike, when someone steals any portion of the profit from your invention you no longer have that profit. It is stealing, pure and simple and there is considerable merit to tossing top management of large patent pirating companies in jail.
I have a reading assignment for you. Study Farnsworth and the way Sarnoff used the resources of RCA to persecute Farnsworth for decades. Then see if you can write an unbiased account about them for TechDIRT.
Incidentally, inducing others to infringe is actionable, it is called contributory infringement.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
What do you suggest an inventor do when a large company takes their invention and the profits from that invention and thumbs their nose at the inventor? This happens all the time.
There is no justice available to an inventor below ten million dollars of infringement; there may be justice between ten and a hundred million. Over a hundred million it is not difficult to get people willing to enforce the inventors' rights.
Then and only then the inventor might see justice. This depends of the court, and some courts actively encourage the thieves and aid and abet their dragging the case out for ten-30 years. The end result being that most inventors go bankrupt.
And that is why inventors flock to Texas. The court does not tolerate delaying tactics.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
I am afraid I have to agree with Mike Masnick on this one.
Sprint has been steadily losing market share, mostly due to poor service and billing errors.
I have been using their wireless data for a few years after dumping AT&T's data plan. Cingular/AT&T flat out scammed me for two years with a steady stream of drivel about how hard they were working to deploy 3G. I was stuck in a contract for two years at $60 a month for a connection which was usually slower than a dialup.
I was considering trying their voice service, willing to buy a phone outright but not willing to sign a two year contract. They refused to allow me to add voice to my data contract and as a result they are not getting a crack a five lines of business.
I have made attempts to talk with upper marketing management and those communications went unanswered.
In addition to offering lower cost phones Sprint needs to give at least a ninety day grace period on contracts. Sprint also needs to offer rollover minutes.
Their reputation is so bad that most people are going to be unwilling to sign a two year contract.
They should give people a choice between contracts and subsidized service and month to service if people buy the equipment outright. As long as they actually deliver good service churn should not hurt them.
I cannot see how they can be hurt any worse than they have already caused by their customer service problems.
I believe that Sprint's EVDO network is superior to all others. To survive Sprint must increase its customer base and they are going to have to buy that base back with exceptional terms and service. I do think they can do this but I am by no means certain that they have the vision or will to forgo short term profits in order to grow the business.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
Once again Mike makes some great points. He is really on a roll this morning.
Good business is always based on delivering fair value and decent service. Craigslist is doing so and profiting handsomely in the process.
It is nice to see that Mike does not expect the people behind Craigslist to not receive any profit from their work as he constantly advocates for inventors.
The average royalty an inventor receives is about 5% of factory wholesale of the product produced. In high volume applications it may fall as low as a tenth of a percent.
So why is it that un-inventive "innovators" try to cheat inventors out of their due and some people cheer them on?
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
"He makes no qualms about the fact that he's copying the idea of the shuttles he just knocked out of business, saying they had a good idea -- he just didn't like the fact that they didn't have to buy a taxi license. Neat trick, huh? Get the government to drive your competitors out of town, and then copy their best ideas."
This is the essence of the fight between inventors and what Mike likes to call innovators. Of coarse, the word innovator is being misused and the meaning twisted.
This kind of dirty dealing is not acceptable. It does not matter if it is done in transportation or the invention business. It is still morally reprehensible.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
"but I'd love to see news organizations get a backbone and tell such sports leagues that there's no compromise and no deal to be had. They're reporters and they'll report as they see fit."
That is the way it is supposed to work but industry financial problems has severely eroded the separation between the business sided and editorial. Business interests are getting away with dictating editorial content today and I don't see this problem getting better anytime soon.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
I am not at all surprised that we may have a situation where a company sucks up to the really big players to the detriment of the smaller companies. It is gratifying to see that the smaller companies are speaking up and that Mike recognizes that there has been an injustice.
This just goes to show that we can find common ground.
Inventors are really tired of being shafted by by patent pirates who claim to be innovators. just because they have the capital to commercialize inventions faster than inventors does not make it right for them to do so without fairly compensating the inventor.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
Every participant does so of their own volition. I assume that they will not misappropriate others work.
This is very different from what is being pushed for inventors, where the masses egged on by corporate patent pirates feel entitled to steal inventors work.
It seems to me that it is time for TechDIRT people to start inventing things, that is if the can, and contribute their inventions by publishing them here.
Everyone should be aware that producing and documenting an invention is many orders of magnitude more difficult then whipping up the typical TechDIRT topic.
This is an opportunity for the TechDIRT community to set a good example.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Eolas Is Baaaaaaaaack; And It's Suing Everyone Over Embeddable Web Widgets
Re: Common Defense
What you are suggesting could open companies collaborating in this manner to civil & maybe even criminal RICO claims. This could be the key to finally put blood sucking thieving transnational companies in their rightful place.
One more point, the reason that inventors are moving their companies to Texas is that the court does not tolerate delaying tactics. Piracy Coalition members hate the court for this.
I expect that eastern Texas will see a huge influx of inventor-entrepreneurs as a result of attempts to stop inventors from accessing that court. Tyler Texas may become the next Silicon Valley while Silicon Valley may well wither because the Piracy Coalition pretty much owns the courts there.
This sounds like poetic justice to me.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Eolas Is Baaaaaaaaack; And It's Suing Everyone Over Embeddable Web Widgets
Eolas is perfect example of an inventor with a solid patent.
I have done both hardware and software engineering. I have used more computer languages and dialects than I can count. I have programmed using manual compilation, assemblers, and high level languages.
Egos being what they are few programmers are willing to admit that they are on the wrong side of the Bell Curve in terms of their capabilities. Yet we all know that there are tremendous differences in programming capabilities. It is a fact that most programmers are drones doing repetitive and unchallenging work. They are not creative.
At the top of the heap you have honest to goodness inventors, the cream of the crop.
The inventor behind Eolas is Mike Doyle, a professor who invented while at the University of California. The invention and prior art have been reviewed with a fine tooth comb, and was tied up in reexamination for years. As a rule, no one licenses a patent while it is being reexamined but those who are infringing usually know they are and they do have the opportunity to actively seek out the inventor and settle up.
The Eolas patent is solid.
Eolas is suing and suing lots of companies because lots of companies are stealing and stealing on the grandest of scales. I expect that the theft amounts to billions of dollars.
Patent litigation is a direct result of disputable conduct by thieving large corporations. There would not be a market for patent enforcement companies if not for the fact that these companies intentionally infringe.
Eolas is not the bad party here. It is a company which produced inventions, taught those inventions to everyone via patents, took on the missionary job of marketing the invention.
This is what happens to many inventors. They show their invention to a number of companies who say they are not interested and then they use the invention without acquiring the rights to do so.
They count on the inventor not being able to afford justice, and that often works.
When the inventor does manage to get help enforcing their patent property rights the big company screams about trolls and there seems to be no shortage of people who buy their propaganda hook line and sinker. Of course, they are usually egged on by corporate shills, PR people operating as bloggers or posing as journalists.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Fixing Trademark Law
There is more we would agree on.
There are plenty of other issues where I agree with you Mike.
But what little time I have to devote to this forum is taken up dealing with all the anti-patent drivel.
It is bad enough that I and other inventors have to fight all the disreputable transnational corporate crooks without having to deal with those who should know better promoting the patent pirates agenda.
Inventors drive new wealth creation. You cannot have what you call innovation without the work of those who actually invent something.
All businesses depend on new wealth creation, even those who are not creating new wealth themselves.
Transnational companies are doing their best to turn America's patent system into a kings sport in order to stop upstart start companies from getting the upper hand. Where else besides America can someone take on the big companies and win?
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Fixing Trademark Law
Sect. 230 & Anti-SLAPP Should Include Trademark
1) Change section 230 to explicitly include save harbor against trademark claims.
2) Pass anti-SLAPP legislation in all states and perhaps a federal anti-SLAPP law.
3) Fine both the plaintiff and their attorneys for bringing SLAPP cases. Fines should be progressively larger for repeat offenders, say ten times of the second offense and a hundred times the base fine for the third. Both the second and third offense should result in sanctions for the attorney. Perhaps a three month suspension for the second offense, a one year suspension for the third, etc. would be appropriate.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Forget Fixing Poor Eyesight... How About Improving Eyesight With A Virtual Overlay
Thinking Ouside the Box
It is nice to see you thinking outside the box. Keep that up and you just might learn how to become an inventor. And then you might actually understand just how much work goes into producing an invention and the need for inventors to be fairly compensated so that they can afford to continue to invent.
With this would come an understanding that all those self professed "innovators" who build their fortunes stealing from actual inventors are scum. While not every scummy patent pirating "innovator" is a member of the Coalition for Patent Fairness & PIRACY the group most certainly has a significant percentage of the worst players.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Nigeria Demands Apology From Sony For Mentioning Nigerian Fraud In A Commercial?
How Many Nigerians Approve
See: http://www.usaid.gov/policy/budget/cbj2010/
"The resources in this request put the United States on a path to double U.S. foreign assistance by 2015, thereby providing the resources needed to help the world’s weakest states reduce poverty, combat global health threats, develop markets, govern peacefully, and expand democracy worldwide. The FY 2010 Function 150 International Affairs request totals $53.9 billion, an increase of 9 percent over the FY 2009 total, which includes both enacted and requested emergency supplemental funding."
It seems to me that America should reallocate about $50 million of aid and block Nigerian internet traffic from entering the US (and yes, I understand that we cannot effectively block all of it).
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Court Dismisses Lawsuit Against No Longer Anonymous Commenter... After Commenter Was Revealed
Need for National Anti-SLAPP With Sanctions
We do need a strong national anti-SLAPP law and we also need to address section 230 end runs using trademark claims. The law needs to contain provisions which attach significant sanctions and fines for lawyers and their clients who are found to have abused the process of law.
I suggest that the first lawsuit an attorney brings which is found to be a SLAPP should result in a $10,000 fine for both the client and the attorney. The second should result in a three month suspension of the attorneys privileges and a $100,000 fine for the client. The third and subsequent infractions should result in a one year suspension and a $1,000,000 fine for both the client and the attorney.
Attorneys should be required by law to disclose to clients past rulings and the potential downside to bringing SLAPP cases :)
Good for you Mike for backing a righteous issue. I keep telling people that you don't have your head stuck where the daylight doesn't shine all the time. It is unfortunate that your positions on patents, which are in all likelihood driven by your kissing up to clients or potential clients are so outrageous. Perhaps you will wise up at some point and recognize that so called innovators would not have any inventions without the inventors who produce them and that inventors are entitled to compensation just as he expects to be compensated by his clients.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Can A Phone Service Provider Block Calls To Numbers It Doesn't Like?
Re: Re: Re: Conference calling
I have not tried the MagicJack but have been using VOIP services for many years. I tried a number of VOIP services and eventually settled on www.BroadVoice.com. It is much more expensive than MagicJack but has many interesting features including allowing customers use of their own VOIP adapters and Asterisk PBX.
Perhaps the best way for MagicJack to handle the issue these conference services is to clearly explain the problem on their web site and offer clients the ability to use them with a prepaid account, passing the cost through to the user?
Also, see: http://www.google.com/search?q=%22Dan+Borislow%22&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.moz illa:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Bad Ideas: Globalizing The Patent System
Re: Careful what you wish for
Yep, Microsoft and other members of the Coalition for Patent Fairness & Piracy would need to buy a Chinese personal lube factory.
Just like their patents, they would have quantity rather than quality.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Bad Ideas: Globalizing The Patent System
GOD, I agree with Mike :)
America has the best patent system in the world. All we need to do is replace upper USPTO management with people who are competent and who do not owe their souls to big business and America can start spawning new invention based businesses which are able to pay decent wages.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Careful What You Ask For: China's Patent System Causing Trouble
History is the key to understanding.
Mike, if your commentary was a bit less biased you could actually be in a position to reach out to those of us who actually know something about this business. Your writings would no doubt improve considerably. This is something which journalists do all the time. They cannot be experts on every topic and they understand this.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: UK Inventor To Lord Mandelson: Make Patent Infringement A Criminal Offense
Re: Database of patent thefts?
Inventors are encouraged to do due diligence on prospective licensees by reviewing legal and news data.
Generally it is wise to take inventions to companies who are not the biggest in an industry. The dominate company is virtually always fat, happy and arrogant and if they pay attention at all to the inventor it is usually just to rip them off.
The companies in second, third or fourth place usually desperately want to displace the company at the top and they are more likely to deal reputably.
This is not always the case, in that some industry segments have developed a pervasive and crooked attitude towards inventors. Examples are the auto and telecom industries. Note that both industries are suffering from the ravages of stagnation.
Even companies who start as inventors usually lose the ability to produce significant inventions over time. HP is a good example of this. Intel is another. IBM, quantity over quality.
hat happens to companies who cannot produce the important inventions they need to continue to prosper in their markets who alienate those who are producing inventions? Take a look at the auto industry.
So the answer is that yes, PIAUSA.org has been keeping score about who is and is not likely to be worth approaching.
One more point, this is something which changes depending on who is running a company and also who their patent counsel is. Some companies who were very disreputable have improved over time. Others who make have started out with the best of intentions have evolved to do incredible evil. Why is it that success virtually always leads to disreputable conduct?
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: UK Inventor To Lord Mandelson: Make Patent Infringement A Criminal Offense
Jail time & Contributory Infringement
I have a reading assignment for you. Study Farnsworth and the way Sarnoff used the resources of RCA to persecute Farnsworth for decades. Then see if you can write an unbiased account about them for TechDIRT.
Incidentally, inducing others to infringe is actionable, it is called contributory infringement.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: The Myth Behind Craigslist: It's Not Maximizing Revenue Potential
Re: Re: A Fair Profit
There is no justice available to an inventor below ten million dollars of infringement; there may be justice between ten and a hundred million. Over a hundred million it is not difficult to get people willing to enforce the inventors' rights.
Then and only then the inventor might see justice. This depends of the court, and some courts actively encourage the thieves and aid and abet their dragging the case out for ten-30 years. The end result being that most inventors go bankrupt.
And that is why inventors flock to Texas. The court does not tolerate delaying tactics.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Why Sprint Should Be Giving Away The Palm Pre For Free
Re: Re:
Sprint has been steadily losing market share, mostly due to poor service and billing errors.
I have been using their wireless data for a few years after dumping AT&T's data plan. Cingular/AT&T flat out scammed me for two years with a steady stream of drivel about how hard they were working to deploy 3G. I was stuck in a contract for two years at $60 a month for a connection which was usually slower than a dialup.
I was considering trying their voice service, willing to buy a phone outright but not willing to sign a two year contract. They refused to allow me to add voice to my data contract and as a result they are not getting a crack a five lines of business.
I have made attempts to talk with upper marketing management and those communications went unanswered.
In addition to offering lower cost phones Sprint needs to give at least a ninety day grace period on contracts. Sprint also needs to offer rollover minutes.
Their reputation is so bad that most people are going to be unwilling to sign a two year contract.
They should give people a choice between contracts and subsidized service and month to service if people buy the equipment outright. As long as they actually deliver good service churn should not hurt them.
I cannot see how they can be hurt any worse than they have already caused by their customer service problems.
I believe that Sprint's EVDO network is superior to all others. To survive Sprint must increase its customer base and they are going to have to buy that base back with exceptional terms and service. I do think they can do this but I am by no means certain that they have the vision or will to forgo short term profits in order to grow the business.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: The Myth Behind Craigslist: It's Not Maximizing Revenue Potential
A Fair Profit
Good business is always based on delivering fair value and decent service. Craigslist is doing so and profiting handsomely in the process.
It is nice to see that Mike does not expect the people behind Craigslist to not receive any profit from their work as he constantly advocates for inventors.
The average royalty an inventor receives is about 5% of factory wholesale of the product produced. In high volume applications it may fall as low as a tenth of a percent.
So why is it that un-inventive "innovators" try to cheat inventors out of their due and some people cheer them on?
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Taxi Owner Copies Innovative Business Model Of Free Shuttles He Just Forced To Shut Down
Morally Reprehensible
This is the essence of the fight between inventors and what Mike likes to call innovators. Of coarse, the word innovator is being misused and the meaning twisted.
This kind of dirty dealing is not acceptable. It does not matter if it is done in transportation or the invention business. It is still morally reprehensible.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Gannett And AP Tell SEC They Won't Sign Up For Restricted Reporting
Business Dictating Editorial Content
That is the way it is supposed to work but industry financial problems has severely eroded the separation between the business sided and editorial. Business interests are getting away with dictating editorial content today and I don't see this problem getting better anytime soon.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Kentucky Cable Companies Point Out That Connected Nation Isn't All That
Is it a surprise?
This just goes to show that we can find common ground.
Inventors are really tired of being shafted by by patent pirates who claim to be innovators. just because they have the capital to commercialize inventions faster than inventors does not make it right for them to do so without fairly compensating the inventor.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
On the post: Open Source Textbooks Gaining Traction
This has merit-there is a difference
This is very different from what is being pushed for inventors, where the masses egged on by corporate patent pirates feel entitled to steal inventors work.
It seems to me that it is time for TechDIRT people to start inventing things, that is if the can, and contribute their inventions by publishing them here.
Everyone should be aware that producing and documenting an invention is many orders of magnitude more difficult then whipping up the typical TechDIRT topic.
This is an opportunity for the TechDIRT community to set a good example.
Ronald J. Riley,
I am speaking only on my own behalf.
Affiliations:
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR act PIAUSA.org
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (810) 597-0194 / (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 8 pm EST.
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