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Steven Shaw
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When patents protect Apple, are they okay?

By | June 27, 2012, 6:57pm PDT

Summary: Fanboys and Fangirls: what do you say about technology patents now that your beloved Apple is being protected by them?

I confess, I just got an iPhone 4S on Monday. I’ve never been a Fanboy, and I haven’t really crossed over: I’m now one of those people who carries around two smartphones. My other phone is a Droid Bionic. I love the iPhone, I really do. In most ways it is a superior piece of machinery to the Bionic, but I’m deeply embedded with all the Google apps and the iPhone sucks at handling them.

Since I’m not a real Fanboy, but many of you are (and also some are Fangirls), I need to ask you a question: What do you think of the injunction that Judge Lucy Koh just granted on behalf of Apple against Samsung? The reason I ask is that so many of you have disdain for the patent-law system. In a recent debate about software patents, 89% of the ZDNet audience was opposed to them.

Granted, this is not a software patent — it’s a design patent — but Apple has and seeks to enforce many of every kind of patent you can imagine. So, Fanboys and Fangirls, what do you say about technology patents now that your beloved Apple is being protected by them? Or are you in the 11% where Apple is concerned?

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Topics

Patent, Apple Inc., Software Patent, Application Development, Steven Shaw

Steven Shaw used to be a litigation attorney at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, a New York law firm, and is now the online community manager for eGullet.org and the Director of New Media Studies at the International Culinary Center.

Disclosure

Steven Shaw

Other than a few shares of Citi, Microsoft, Alcoa, and Greif that I can't seem to get rid of, and our apartment in Harlem, my family's investments are in ETFs managed automatically by Amerivest. At present my primary employment is in the nonprofit sector, though I may at any moment go work for a tech startup in which case I'll update this disclosure statement. I have a personal friendship with Nathan Myhrvold, the former Microsoft guy and principal of Intellectual Ventures, but my relationship with him strictly concerns the food-and-wine aspect of his ventures. I teach at the International Culinary Center, formerly the French Culinary Institute.

Biography

Steven Shaw

Steven Shaw used to be a litigation attorney at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, a New York law firm, and is now the online community manager for eGullet.org and the Director of New Media Studies at the International Culinary Center.
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Top Rated

The legitimacy of the patent system is not the issue at hand here.
thetwonkey 2 days ago
The real issue is the unbelievably huge number of totally bogus patents based on nothing more than a thought scribbled on a cocktail napkin, so broad in scope that they encompass the invention of fire and the wheel. This is a more recent development in the history of the Patent Office, but unfortunately seems to be expanding at warp speed. Being a techie, I have read some of these granted patents, and the thing that always strikes me about them is how remarkably vague, nebulous, and incomplete they are, and yet they were granted. It makes a mockery of the whole system, and if allowed to continue unfettered, will ultimately destroy the system. The ability to fund litigators to the point of bankrupting competitors should not be the determinant in establishing patent validity and ownership, but that is more often than not the case. As it stands now, I think the patent dispute process would be best settled by pistol duels to the death, winner take all. It would be just as random and arbitrary as the current process, but cost far less to pursue by either party. I say we give that a try.
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Just In

RE: Linux would love that
fatman65536 1 day ago
And Ballmer would provide the world with another chair throwing incident.
View in thread
-1 Votes
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I'm pro-business, pro-capitalism and pro-patents. Enough said.
kenosha77a Updated - 2 days ago
Whether the patents are Apple patents, Microsoft patents, Google Patents, ex cetera, I have and will always support patents and a person or Corporation's legal right to defend a patent.

BTW, why do you think one has to belong to the "Fanboy and Fangirl" club to endorse the concept of a legal patent defense?

IMO, the trouble with enforcing patents in the past (and why those contested patent cases are seldom brought to a closure or even to begin a legal defense process) is the enormous sums needed to hire the likes of you, Steven, and other legal assets for a patent defense. That is the only reason patent cases are seldom brought about or read about by the average citizen. Plus the time involved to fully explore the legal process.

But Apple and the other Corporations that have been involved in the recent tech patent cases DO have "deep financial pockets", so to speak, to fund legal challenges or defenses to contested patents and they have the time.
22 Votes
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OK. I patent wiping my butt. I sue you.
spark555 Updated - 2 days ago
You'll support my case, right?

If you're confused on my angle - have a look at your words "ALWAYS support patents and... right to defend." Are you capable of embracing the idea that our court and patent system may be capable of granted bogus patents, and that "always" defending them might wind up putting you on the side of stupid/harmful/wasteful/bad-for-humanity?
-13 Votes
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If the authorities grant you a patent for your example and
kenosha77a 2 days ago Below threshold | Show anyway
A patent court upholds your patent, then good for you and bad for me.

Granting a patent and upholding said patent are two components of the same process. The system will determine if the patent is bogus or not. All it takes is money and a good legal team.
-15 Votes
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Ya gotta love people who come up
baggins_z 2 days ago Below threshold | Show anyway
with what they think are clever examples of why patents are evil, when, in reality, all they have done is shown they are totally ignorant of what a patent actually is.
27 Votes
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Tech Patents
TahoePadreFan 2 days ago
Although i would normally agree with you. In this case you dont quite understand what has been going on with Tech Patents. We have a Patent system with people who dont know anything about technology. But Apple, MS, Samsung, Google, They know technology. They have been putting patent requests together that are so broad they should be rejected on pure principle. Its like Apples pantent on the Ipad "A 10 inch tablet in square form". Please, thats like saying no one can make a tv anymore because they are all square. Tech companies know that the patent system doesnt understand technology and they are using that to there financial benefit and to stopped innovation. Yes i believe if you truly design something of worth you should be paid for it. But when we are talking about the tech patents the whole system needs to be redone. No one at the patent office should be able to sign off on tech patents without understanding the tech industry. Its just common sense most of the time. But when have corporations or the justice system used common sense?
4 Votes
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I loved what you said
SoYouSaid 2 days ago
"But when have corporations or the justice system used common sense?"

We can only hope that some day they'll correct our stupid patent system .......did I really say that.......... It will never happen ........ NO one/corp. would ever want to open up that can of worms.........
12 Votes
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No.
Jimster480 2 days ago
The fact is that none of the "patents" they were granted are actually "patents" at all. They are not designs, they are not even ideas, they are just common things that are basic features. its like I own the patent to the mouse, but you own the patent to moving a pointer on the screen, so now I cannot use my device without infringing on your patents. And that is what Apple has done here. They don't own, nor did they invent any of the physical technology that is in phones today (considering they have never actually invented a single real technology, and only design things). The fact is that they now own the way that any of the technologies used in phones are physically used, which is even worse than owning the patents on the hardware itself. Which is why they are bogus and should all be immediately revoked.
Anyone who believes that these patents are just in any way is obviously a fanboy and only wants Apple (a company who cares nothing about anyone, especially their consumers) to dominate the market with their subpar products.
-7 Votes
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RE: NO....
T-Wrench Updated - 2 days ago Below threshold | Show anyway
It amazes me, how all of you Pro MS Fans, Jump on the Apple haters club, when they defend their patents, whether they bought them, designed them, or invented them, but when MS threatens to sue Android hardware OEMs, you'll defend MS to the death.......

Talk about double standards and blind Loveland hate...whew!

Maybe it's time for you to take along look in the mirror again, it's OK, I promise that mean, upset looking person, with the strung-out look on their face really is you......

So, if it's a nice day out where you are,like it is here in Maine, maybe you should go for a walk,and get some fresh air, you'll feel much better...
1 Vote
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re T-wrench's comment
max_wedge 1 day ago
In my perusal of MAC versus WINDOWS flame wars, what I see the Windows users are not defending Microsoft. What they are doing is defending against the continual barrage of "see how much better than everyone else Apple is" and the constant inference that Windows users need their heads read.

In terms of phones, the same group of people who are fed up with being fed this holier than thou crap from Apple fanboys berating their preferred desktop operating system of everyday usage, are often Android users. In fact the phenomenon of "MS Fanboy" actually isn't that common. There are "Windows" fanboys (common), Android fanboys (common) and Windows Phone fanboys (very rare breed, mostly unsophisticated teens). But there aren't MS fanboys as such. There aren't large swathes of people who revere Bill Gates as a God and adopt any technology he put's his company's logo on.
-2 Votes
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Re: When patents protect Apple are they OK?
T-Wrench 2 days ago
No, no, No way,in no manner is this acceptable. When are you people going to learn, that this a MS world,and everything else out there is like stepping in cow pies; after you've done it,you can't shakeout off your boots, it attracts bugs of all kinds, and it stinks.....

Only,and I mean Only, are patents OKAY WHEN THEY PROTECT MS!!!!!!

Btw,for those that don't know, this was intended as sarcasm....

TW
-1 Votes
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Wow, Max wedge, you haven't spent much time here reading then have you..
T-Wrench 1 day ago
I know a few people with Macs, and a couple with Iphones, but I haven't seen this holier than thou attitude you speak of.

Everyday, there is an article about MS or Apple, this and that, and the majority of postings, are anti-Apple, which in a way does make sense if you think about it, at least in my opinion.

Most people use and prefer Windows based PC's, hence the large marketshare of desktops and laptops...

Ever since Apple has been dominant in the Tablet space, there are 100's of stories about Ipad killers coming to market, and all the anti Apple crowd comes out in droves...And a lot of them post here, and post their outright hatred, hatred of a device.

They act as though they're afraid MS will dry up and blow away, it's just incredulous to read some of these comments...

Now, IMHO, I like to use my Ipad, but I also like using my Win Vista laptop, and Win7 desktop. I do a lot of writing, am currently working on my 2nd and 3rd novels, ( I know it sounds strange, but it is what it is), and I prefer to use my Ipad while mobile for doing this instead of carrying around my laptop. At home however, it's usually the laptop.

And for writing these books, I actually prefer Pages over MS Word. But if I'm working on a document for work or home and I need to incorporate any pics or drawings, I prefer Word...

And for spreadsheets I prefer MS Excel, I've yet to see or use a better piece of software...

And as I've stated before on here, it all comes down to choice, and using what works for you..

What I do get tired of hearing, is the close-minded opinions of those that call the Ipad a toy, that shows, to me anyway, that the individuals who state that have never really tried to use an Ipad..

Or lack the inteligence to do so. I have no problem with they don't like the device, or the company that built them, but to post crap like that is just childish, again IMHO....

At one time on Zdnet you could come here for information, and most of the posters would even chime in and help you, if you had an issue with something, but lately it's gotten so off track it's really sad.

Do I think all these lawsuits over patents are stupid? Yes, I do. I do feel that individuals, or companies that invent something though, should be protected for a limited amount of time, and then it should be released out to the public to use for their own creations or inventions.

I work in Defense, and when we make a product (new design), we are the sole producers of that item, usually for about 3-7 years. After that, we have to release that products tech data package to the public so other companies can bid on the right to produce that product against us.

In a way, I think Patents should have to work this way, though the sole ownership would have to be less, maybe 1.5 years, because of how quickly this technology is changing...

This would eliminate the patent lawsuits, as long as the minimum timeframe was met.

Thanks for the reply Max, and I hopwe you come back and read my reply to you..

TW
2 Votes
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Small Thinking
bigpicture 2 days ago
Small thinking boy, very small thinking. Everything that can ever come into existence is already inherent in the Universe, otherwise how could it come into existence at all? How? It is known that all ideas, possibilities and potentials are already in existence, just not apparent to all individuals at the same time. There are civilizations in other parts of the Universe, that have already invented things 10,000 years ago that are not even contemplated here yet. Who is going to enforce their "first to invent" rights here? Who?

Granting special rights to people who tune in on a certain frequency, is like granting special rights to people who tune their radios to a unique station. Patents are just Small Thinking plain craziness.
0 Votes
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bigpicture, please read my reply
T-Wrench 1 day ago
above to max wedge. Are you saying that someone who invents something should have no protection or benefit from inventing? I realize money is not the same to everyone, but some people invent as a means to make an income.

So, now we're going to take that away? I really believe, that a short timeframe should be put on patents, and after that time is up, anyone can use them for his or her gains to add them into what ever it is they're producing.

To not benefit or be paid for ideas would greatly decrease One of the reasons for inventing...

So, sorry, I don't feel it's small thinking at all, but maybe you're just well off, and have never had to starve before. Some people, and a great many of them, invent, create, innovate to exist and get by, it's a fact of life....
8 Votes
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Honestly
Peter Perry 2 days ago
I think it is a victory in name only... How can they be happy about blocking a device that Samsung doesn't even make anymore?
48 Votes
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Top Rated
The legitimacy of the patent system is not the issue at hand here.
thetwonkey 2 days ago Top Rated
The real issue is the unbelievably huge number of totally bogus patents based on nothing more than a thought scribbled on a cocktail napkin, so broad in scope that they encompass the invention of fire and the wheel. This is a more recent development in the history of the Patent Office, but unfortunately seems to be expanding at warp speed. Being a techie, I have read some of these granted patents, and the thing that always strikes me about them is how remarkably vague, nebulous, and incomplete they are, and yet they were granted. It makes a mockery of the whole system, and if allowed to continue unfettered, will ultimately destroy the system. The ability to fund litigators to the point of bankrupting competitors should not be the determinant in establishing patent validity and ownership, but that is more often than not the case. As it stands now, I think the patent dispute process would be best settled by pistol duels to the death, winner take all. It would be just as random and arbitrary as the current process, but cost far less to pursue by either party. I say we give that a try.
29 Votes
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We did what?
Robert Hahn Updated - 2 days ago
    I have read some of these granted patents, and the thing that always strikes me about them is how remarkably vague, nebulous, and incomplete they are, and yet they were granted.
I have to agree with this. I defy anyone to tell me what Patent #6,661,431 covers, and I am one of the inventors. By the time the lawyers got done with it, it was gobbledegook. And yet, there it is, waiting for some other lawyer to come along and make money with it. I sure couldn't.
8 Votes
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Method of representing high-dimensional information
Mr. Copro Encephalic to You 2 days ago
@Robert Hahn: Patent US6661431 is sheer poetry. I wept when I read it. Wrought with defensible obfuscation designed to broaden the horizon of market impact and maximize plausible litigation. Not like the glaringly narrow-in-scope limited horizon "Unlocking a Device by Performing Gestures on an Unlock Image" (aka "Slide to Unlock") patent (US20090241072), written by naive first-year patent filers. A smart IP attorney would have titled the latter "Method of permitting a subsequent action based on user action". Your IP lawyers were worth every penny.
-1 Votes
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@ Robert Hahn
rhonin 1 day ago
A method of representing high-dimensional information collects, organizes, and presents information on how a target interacts with objects. As the target, such as an individual or group, moves between the objects, the method collects navigation data indicative of the target's path. Relationships are identified in the navigation data, with the relationship data being aggregated to articulate a behavior. Once the behavior has been identified, an indicia indicative of the behavior is selected. A representation of selected objects is arranged on a display, and the indicia is mapped to the arranged objects. In such a manner, the high-dimensional behavior aspect of the navigation data is efficiently and concisely presented in relation to the objects.

The drawing made sense. The verbiage, not so much. shocked
28 Votes
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My biggest problem...
wright_is 2 days ago
is that I look at most of the patents that are coming up in court now and all I see are common techniques that we have been using for decades!

The only "new and unique" feature to the patent is that somebody slipped the word "mobile" in there. If a patent exists for picking information out of a string of data (E.g. a telephone number from a block of text), which we have been doing since the beginning of the computer industry, and doing something with it, it doesn't matter whether the device is stationary or mobile, so putting the word mobile in a new patent for something that every half decent programmer can do in his sleep is bogus.

Heck, patenting software is bogus anyway, and processes come to that. Thankfully the EU kicked out software patents, saying they were already amply covered by copyright.

Throw in patents like the Apple "rounded corners" design and the US patent system is a laughing stock! Really? Rounded corners? I only have to look around my desk and I see a dozen different pieces of equipment with rounded corners which predate the iPad... Heck a lot of equipment with rounded corners predates me and I'm approaching the half century mark at a rapid rate of knots!
8 Votes
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Speaking of rounded corners...
cornpie Updated - 2 days ago
You can't do square corners either because that would be stealing from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etch_A_Sketch

Seriously - the general form factor of a tablet or smart phone is going to be pretty much determined by the screen size and shape i.e. generally rectangular. And then, brilliant idea: Hey, lets round off those corners so people don't poke themselves with the pointy ones. Only in the technology world would something like that be patent-able. In fact in many products, the first time someone poked themselves in the eye with the square corner you would get sued for NOT making it round. Heck, this is the country where McDonald's was sued because their coffee was hot.

And as far as software goes - short of someone actually copying and pasting code I agree it's bogus. We could show endless examples from other industries where people trying to solve the same problem came up with very similar solutions.
8 Votes
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"huge number of totally bogus patents"
FrederickLeeson 2 days ago
I entirely agree. As far as hardware patents go one measure that would clap a stopper over the antics of "BigCorp" (whichever company we are talking about) would be a simple rule. "No working prototype, no patent".
8 Votes
+ -
That actually used to be a requirement.
brcowan@... 2 days ago
A physical model or working prototype used to be a patent requirement. That's where the models in the patent museum came from.

Patenting a product's appearance is just silly, as are > 90% of software patents. (Unique data compression methods or other truly new ideas are one thing, but the majority are best described as Bovine Scatology.)
0 Votes
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"No working prototype, no patent". ....Is the only way it should be
SoYouSaid 2 days ago
It would stop 99.9% of the bogus patent clains.
-1 Votes
+ -
So are you saying all of Microsoft infringement claims are bogus
SoYouSaid 2 days ago
and should be thrown out? ...... Linux would love that
1 Vote
+ -
If the shoe fits.....
rhonin 1 day ago
NT
0 Votes
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RE: Linux would love that
fatman65536 1 day ago
And Ballmer would provide the world with another chair throwing incident.
-9 Votes
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I disagree...
john@... 2 days ago Below threshold | Show anyway
Samsung have a rich history of producing KIRF products of whatever the leading tech device is at the time. It's not just Apple, they did KIRF ripoffs of the Motorola RAZR too and many other devices.

If Samsung were "original" then how come the charger looks the same although more cheaply made and black?

Wouldn't it be great if these tech companies were actually pushing the envelope and creating compulsive and unique devices in their own right rather than seeing what the market leader is doing and cloning it?
7 Votes
+ -
Try this.....
rhonin 2 days ago
The end that connects to the phone is standard.
The end that plugs into the outlet is bought by Samsung ( and a lot of other OEMs ) who has the vendor emboss Samsung on it. It is a procured part.
-4 Votes
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Try this then...
NonFanboy 2 days ago
The end that connect to the phone is standard... for Apple and not used by other smartphone/ tablet manufacturers with the sole exception of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1.

The cube shaped A/C adapter is a procured part... again for Apple and is not used by any other smartphone/ tablet manufacturers with again the sole exception of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1.

Someone said that Apple is defending an image - yes that is right. Apple is defending the look and feel of it's iPad. A product that Samsung essentially made a carbon copy of with it's Galaxy Tab 10.1. Love Apple or hate them, like the result of the court ruling or hate it Apple is protecting what they see as theirs. The court ruled in Apple's favor.
3 Votes
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@ Non-Fanboy
rhonin 1 day ago
I have an older Braun razor the has a square adapter for the cord.
The only difference is I can swap prongs for EU vs. USA ....
It is about an 1/8" taller and black.
10 Votes
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Samsung...
TahoePadreFan 2 days ago
You are right that Samsung has been doing this for a long time. The one point you miss is: Samsung makes most of the products that go into the IPad and other devices. So when they make a Knock off product it is always going to look like something all ready on the market because they are using product from there own factories. If companies dont want to have Samsung rip them off so much make your own products.
-3 Votes
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It is going to look the same
danbi 2 days ago
So because Samsung is manufacturing the CPU microchip that goes in the iPad (to Apple's *private* specification), it means they have to package it in exactly the same aluminum/glass body, in exactly the same external packaging, colors etc?

Do you suggest that Apple should terminate their manufacturing contract with Samsung? Apple won't be hurt much by that, because the designs are theirs and there *are* other parties besides Samsung who make them. But would Samsung be happy by such development? I don't think so!

Try something else...
3 Votes
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@ Danbi
rhonin Updated - 1 day ago
Mazda Motors used to make the Ford Escape.
It looked a lot like the Mazda model.

Similar engine design / size
Very similar tires and rims
Same brakes and pads
Similar transmission
etc......

From a distance they looked very similar wink
9 Votes
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No one EVER says "I was going to buy a Jag, but I bought this Hyundai."
pishaw Updated - 2 days ago
That's Hyundais business model. They make cars that look like Accords, like Jaguars, etc. Everyone knows this but the other manufacturers don't seem to care. Why? Because Honda and Jaguar make a very good product. People don't buy Hyundais because they look like an Accord. They buy them because they cost less.

If a manufacturer feels their product is threatened by something that looks the same, that tells me the manufacturer feels the product is less than. If they're threatened by competition because it LOOKS the same, why would I spend my money for it?

Besides, how much design originality could there be in devices that are plastic rectangles with a touch display? Are you going to make your rectangle round? Are you going to tell me yours is completely different because it's yellow, and the other one is black?

But most importantly, Apple is defending an image, not the technology. I didn't but my laptop because it fits with my 'brand', or it makes me look cooler and boosts my self esteem.

That seems to be Apples core customer.
9 Votes
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Don't Like It.
DannyO_0x98 Updated - 2 days ago
Don't like it when Apple tries to block imports or get an injunction. Don't like it when Nokia, Motorola, etc. sue Apple. Don't like it when Microsoft says pay it for long file name support in Linux or else get sued. Don't like it when Lodsys sues developers for technology that Apple licensed when it made its SDK. Don't like it when BT sued to own the internet (they lost). Don't like it when Paul Allen sues to get money for web pages that have ads and headlines.

I also don't like people knocking off other's products, but that is but a footnote to all the stuff that I really hate. People who want to play Barbary Pirates as the innovators sail past.

Yes, I am an Apple fan and I don't deny their engagement and leadership in these expensive, counter-productive, court-time-wasting brouhahas.
-10 Votes
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The MS Surface is proof you don't have to copy the iPad.
MissionMan36 2 days ago Below threshold | Show anyway
Looking at the current stream of tablets, Samsung is being targeted for a reason. They are the ones copying Apple from a design perspective. Even the Samsung council couldn't tell the different between them at 12 foot away which is not far.

Compare it to Microsoft and their design doesn't look or feel like an iPad in any way. Compare it to the Nokia Gorilla Glass phone which looks nothing like an iPhone.

The reality here is that there are two ways to design. You can be lazy and copy someone else in which case you pay the price, or you can try come up with a design of your own. In Samsung's case they chose the former and they are paying the price for their own laziness. Samsung produces great hardware but its really not that hard to come up with a unique design that is slightly different. All you have to do is look at the iPhone concept ideas that come up before every iPhone is released and you have a good example of how someone can create a design which is similar and yet unique enough not to expose the company to a copycat lawsuit.
21 Votes
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both surface and ipad mutually violate plenty of MS and Apple patents
spark555 2 days ago
The system is broken. So many overly broad patents have been granted that EVERYONE is in violation of someone else's "Patented" technology if you bring ANY product to market.

Patents were intended to protect small-time inventors from having their ground-breaking new inventions stolen by big evil corporations. This idea has turned into the exact opposite where the legal system is so slow and tied up in multi-million-dollar legal teams that the MAIN way patents are used is that the huge evil corporations are the ones who try and sue everyone else out of existence because only the largest entities have the ability to sustain years of court battles and fleets of lawyers required to win.

Tablet computer? Envisioned in the 1960's by the movie 2001. That's where the "design" came from. And it's now in the public domain since it's been more than 30 years.

Sliding a lock from left to right to open something? That design dates back several hundred years, if not thousands. It's a direct copy of a long existing physical device - not an invention.

Squeezing your fingers together to make something smaller? Invented 50 years ago by a group of children using play-dough.

Come on people. This is stupid.

If someone puts an Apple logo on a tablet - SUE them for copyright infringement. But good gawd - the patents being pursued are like Goodyear patenting the black-round-pnematic-tire-like-object and forbidding anyone else from making a tire that could be mistaken for another brand from a distance of 500 feet. Guess what? Tires look very much alike because they are TIRES.

Surface looks LOTS like an iPad, with a cover which happens to have a keyboard. The iPad looks a lot like several PocketPC tablets which PRE DATED IT. And all of them look very much like what was "invented" in a movie 50-odd years ago from a "design" standpoint.
4 Votes
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I can tell the difference
roteague 2 days ago
I own a Samsung Galaxy 10.0 Tab and I can tell the difference. They don't look alike, if they did, I wouldn't have bought one; I don't think the iPad is a very good looking tablet. Laywers are no more or less technically inclined than the general population.
2 Votes
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Thank You!
daengbo 2 days ago
"Almost indestinguishable" really gets me. A judge can't tell the difference between 4:3 and 16:9? If Apple is going to get a design patent, they should at least have to choose an aspect ratio and size.
4 Votes
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Children were using slates in schools long before...
bigkeefer 2 days ago
Steve Jobs was even born. They looked amazingly like, yup you guessed it, iPads. If schools had to cut budgets and reissued slates with a piece of chalk to each pupil I guess Apple would sue them too. Does this mean all other companies other than Apple have to make round tablets? Whole thing: absurd
-2 Votes
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And no offense, but your comment:
T-Wrench 1 day ago
Absurd..
-2 Votes
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But
piiman Updated - 2 days ago
Isn't that the point of making a competing product? And who buys or uses a tablet from 12 feet away? Doesn't anyone look at the boxes when they buy these things?
-1 Votes
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You forget the purpose of an iToy
jvitous 2 days ago
They are fashion accessories. Whether they are useful or not is beside the point -- if people mistake you for one of the flock from 12' away, well, that's a problem. How is your average iLemming supposed to know you're not one of them? They'll start their mating ritual and get all worked up before they realize they've been fooled by an incompatible, higher life form. Apple is more concerned with "look and feel" for this reason, as opposed to "form and function."
-3 Votes
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Just checked EBay
EVHGameOvR 2 days ago
Yep, still there.
4 Votes
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Where Apple ...
johnfenjackson@... 2 days ago
... other greedy global corporations, the legal profession, patents, copyright, Government and the Finance world are concerned I am of the opinion that the balance of power has swung so much in their direction and against the common good ... that the processes upon which they are built need to be restructured from the ground up.

I'd also say that America contains the most malevolent and powerful entities in this melee and the least likely to make any effective progress at restructuring.

Does that answer all your questions on this and related topics Steven?
5 Votes
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What we need ...
johnfenjackson@... 2 days ago
... instead of austerity measures applied to the populace are efficiency measures applied to the major corporations and important bodies.

I would, however, be happy to cut the salaries of bankers, lawyers, realtors and Government officials ... drastically, until they got the idea happy
12 Votes
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Making Lawers look bad...
dsf3g Updated - 2 days ago
This is the second post I've seen by Mr. Shaw. The first contained the phrase "an yes, I'm smarter than you" in the title, then the rest of the piece went on to show that no, he was not smarter than most of us... just a bit more annoying. Now he's got a piece that accuses us of being Apple "fanboys" in the title. Hmmm... was this guy hired to be a professional troll, or just to make lawyers look bad?

In any case, here's the problem with the patents that Apple has asserted on their tablet design: they are overly broad, and cover obvious functional structures. Apple is claiming a patent over thinness, rectangularity and rounded corners (apparently). Well, my coffee table has rounded corners for the same reason the iPad does (to avoid being jabbbed by a sharp corner). Thinness has been a goal of consumer electronics at least since the first notebook computers, and rectangularity is too laughably broad a design to even bother commenting on.

Now compare this to the trademark protections that BMW asserts on their instantly recognizable "kidney grill." This is a structure that was clearly designed for no other reason than to distinguish a BMW from its rivals. Any number of visually distinct alternatives does at least as good a job of allowing air into the engine compartment to keep it cool. That is clearly a design that should enjoy intellectual property protection.

I sympathize with Apple (and all companies') desire to prevent others from copying their designs, but the problem here is that the whole concept of a tablet computer is so minimalist as to render these sorts of patents impossible. At best, you should be able to patent/trademark non-functional deviations from the Platonic form of a thin rounded edged rectangle (such as the hollowed out corner on Barnes & Noble's Nook Color).
11 Votes
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Also, corners have been rounded for structual reasons
William Farrel 2 days ago
on items for years, as rounded corners don't have the stress point that a square corner does. It's a technique that's been known and used for years.
-2 Votes
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He was hired to make Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols look good...
daftkey Updated - 2 days ago
...and from what I've read so far, he's doing a smashing good job!
-1 Votes
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About that BWM "kidney grill" design patent, dsf3g
kenosha77a 2 days ago
Chrysler patented the iconic Jeep "seven vertical slot" grille design and thought that "would be that".

GM later came out with their own Sport Utility product, "The Hummer" with, you guessed it, a seven vertical slot" grille design. Now, the Hummer had a longer grille because the Hummer was wider than the Jeep, but this Hummer grille had seven vertical slots, non-the-less.

Guess what. Chrysler challenged GM over the Hummer's grille design and lost the case.

Actually, that bit of historical trivia is altogether irrelevant except that, in my opinion, if another car marker were to emulate the BMW twin grille design and change just a few minor things, that BMW design patent would hold as much weight as the Chrysler Jeep seven vertical slot grille design did.

Then again, "look and feel" design patents must still be enforced because competing products (from different companies, of course) may offer devices that mimic others devices but may operated in ways that differ from the other competing product. This effect could lead to confusion in the marketplace and potentially harm the reputation of a company's product or the Company's reputation as a whole.

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