infringe

Handset makers using the Google Android mobile operating system may be slapped with additional licensing fees if Oracle and Microsoft have their way. But what might that mean for the average cell phone consumer? Would the price of Android devices go up?

It's not likely, say experts. There are several reasons to think that legal victories from Oracle or Microsoft would do little to move the needle in terms of pricing for consumers. What's more, whatever additional costs might be added to the phone would likely be offset by savings elsewhere, still guaranteeing that handset makers generate decent … Read more

A federal jury in Eastern Texas, the same district where Lodsys has filed all of its patent suits, has ruled against Apple in a case accusing the iPod maker of infringing on patents for downloadable playlists.

Bloomberg first reported Friday on the verdict requiring Apple to award $8 million in damages to the patent holder, Personal Audio, a nonpracticing entity--meaning it licenses patents but doesn't actually have any other business. The jury found Apple liable for infringing on the patents and upheld their validity, Bloomberg reported, citing Personal Audio's lawyer, Ron Schutz.

Personal Audio, a patent licensing company … Read more

Links from Wednesday's episode of Loaded:

Facebook set to launch "something awesome"later today

Google to drop Blogger and Picasa brands

Adobe and Avid offer deals to switchers

Steve Jobs biography gets title

iPad 2 jailbreak is live

CNET infringement case dropped

Oracle is seeking $2.6 billion in damages from Google as part of its patent infringement lawsuit over Java.

In a document filed yesterday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Oracle cited the $2.6 billion figure based on estimates by the company's damages expert, Iain Cockburn, a professor of finance and economics at Boston University.

That specific figure runs contrary to Google's interpretation, which is far broader in range. In a June 18 filing from Google and documented by FOSS Patents, the search giant came to the conclusion that if it were … Read more

Dolby has filed a lawsuit against Research In Motion for patent infringement, the audio technology company announced today.

Dolby is suing the maker of the BlackBerry in the U.S. and Germany for using "highly efficient digital audio compression technologies which allow manufacturers and consumers to provide and enjoy high quality audio while using extremely limited amounts of transmission and/or storage space for such audio."

Dolby asserts that it owns patents covering the technology used in RIM's BlackBerry smartphones and new tablet, the PlayBook, and claims "all other major" smartphone makers have agreed to … Read more

Lodsys, the company pursuing high-profile patent infringement cases against many in the tech industry, is finding itself on the receiving end of a pre-emptive lawsuit challenging its patents.

ESET, a San Diego-based antivirus software maker, filed a declaratory judgment lawsuit (see filing below) on Friday against Lodsys with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. The lawsuit, first reported by Florian Mueller of the FOSS Patents blog, seeks a declaration that its products do not infringe on Lodsys' four patents and to invalidate those patents.

Lodsys claimed in letters to ESET that the upgrade feature in … Read more

Lodsys, the company pursuing high-profile patent infringement cases against many in the tech industry, has broadened its legal attack to include Adidas, Best Buy, and other big-name companies.

Lodsys' previous targets include iOS and Android developers, Samsung, Hewlett-Packard, Brother, and Motorola. Now the list is a lot longer, with a Friday filing naming Sam's Club, Best Western, Black & Decker, the Container Store, the Teaching Company, Vitamin Shoppe, Vegas.com, Adidas, CVS, and Best Buy.

The move isn't a total surprise. Lodsys sent Adidas a letter on April 19 saying the sports shoe and apparel maker had infringed … Read more

Lodsys, the company that's gone after a number of Apple iOS developers for allegedly infringing on its patents, is now doing the same to at least one developer on Google's Android platform.

Cult of Mac has dug up a developing discussion thread on Google's Android developer forums, noting that at least one Android developer has been targeted by the group over the use of in-app purchase within their application.

"We recently implemented in-app purchases for our Android application and several weeks later we received a letter from Lodsys, claiming that we infringed on their patents," … Read more

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has called Apple out for not responding fast enough, or at all, to a developing legal situation that's got some iOS developers spooked.

In a post on the group's blog today, EFF staff attorney Julie Samuels said Apple has put developers in a difficult position by requiring them to use within their apps in-app purchase (IAP), a mechanism that's been targeted by a third-party group that says the technology infringes on its patents.

That group, Lodsys, triggered a controversy last week when it began going after developers--instead of Apple--in seeking a licensing … Read more