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Amazon patent outlines an anonymous mobile payment system
- Amazon may be preparing to launch an anonymous mobile payment system as evident by a patent application published yesterday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Originally filed for in April 2009, the service would allow people to purchase items…
Microsoft signs Android, Chrome OS patent deal with Foxconn
- Hon Hai Precision Industry, commonly known as Foxconn, has joined a list of manufacturers to reach a licensing agreement with Microsoft over patents associated with Android and Chrome OS. Fine details about the arrangement are being kept under wraps for…
Apple patent filing outlines methods to lessen iPhone drop damage
- Having to lug around your iPhone in a bulky protective case to prevent damage from accidental drops may soon be a thing of the past if Apple has anything to say about it. A recent patent filing from Cupertino outlines…
THX says iDevices, iMac speaker design infringes on their patent
- THX has filed a lawsuit against Apple alleging the company’s iPhones, iPads and iMacs infringe on one of their patents. Specifically, the privately held audio standards assurance company lays claim to a patent issued in 2008 for narrow profile speaker…
Apple applies for patent to bring wireless charging to Smart Cover
- Apple has applied for a patent that would allow iPad owners to charge their tablet using a special version of the company’s Smart Cover. Referred to as “Integrated Inductive Charging in Protective Cover” in the application filed with the U.S.…
Carnegie Mellon asks court to triple Marvell's $1.17 billion fine
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Carnegie Mellon University has asked a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania court to triple the $1.17 billion patent infringement fine levied against Marvell in December -- an outcome that would dwarf the record-setting $1.05 billion ruling in last August's Apple versus Samsung case. CMU, which...
Judge invalidates 13 Motorola patent claims against Microsoft
- Microsoft scored a victory against Google-owned Motorola Mobility this week after a judge scrapped 13 of the latter party's patent claims in a years-long dispute over H.264-related royalties. Waged in US and German courts, the battle involves three patents (7,310,374,…
Samsung sues LG for allegedly copying PLS display technology
- Samsung has hit LG with another lawsuit, this time for purportedly infringing on LCD patents. Filed with the Seoul Central District Court, the complaint aims to invalidate seven LG patents that allegedly copy a plane-to-line switching (PLS) design that Samsung…
Microsoft sued over use of Live Tiles in Windows
- Microsoft is already facing lawsuits related to the recently-launched Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 operating systems. Surfcast, a Portland-based company OS development company has filed a complaint with a U.S. District Court in Maine, claiming that Microsoft is infringing…
Samsung alleges jury foreman tainted patent trial with Apple
- Samsung has requested that a judge toss out a recent verdict awarded to Apple as part of an ongoing patent dispute. The Korean company claims jury foreman Velvin Hogan failed to disclose the fact that he filed for bankruptcy in…
Weekend tech reading: Kodak loses patent suit against Apple, RIM
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Eastman Kodak has lost a patent case against Apple and Research In Motion, dealing a blow to the onetime film giant's efforts to raise billions of dollars by selling off its intellectual property. Kodak filed a complaint against the iPhone and BlackBerry makers at the U.S. ITC...
Patent troll litigation totaled $29 billion in 2011, sidetracks innovation
- A new study from Boston University reveals that non-practicing entities, otherwise known as patent trolls, cost the US $29 billion in 2011. Monetary damages aside, the study found that the increasing number of lawsuits is curbing innovation among small and medium-sized companies.
Sony patent aims to put content-interrupting commercials in video games
- If you thought randomly-placed in-game advertisements were annoying, you’d better be sitting down for this one. It’s come to light that Sony filed a patent that would implement content-suspending advertisements in video games.
Patent suggests Apple's haptic feedback may reshape your screen
- RIM, long-time purveyor of fine QWERTY phones, has finally decided it's time to abandon physical keyboards. With that in mind, it appears we're entering a point of no return for such input devices as they continue to steadily disappear from the mobile…
Man files lawsuit against Apple alleging Smart Cover patent infringement
- An Aspen, Colorado resident has filed a lawsuit against Apple and retailer Target that claims the company’s Smart Cover infringes on a patent he owns. Jerald Bovino filed for the “portable computer case” patent in mid-2003 which was later issued…
Judge favors Motorola over Microsoft in Xbox 360 patent case
- Microsoft has suffered a setback in a dispute with Motorola over patents involving technology in the Xbox 360. In a preliminary ruling Monday, US ITC Judge David Shaw found that Microsoft is infringing on four of the five patents in…
Microsoft files patent for secondary low-power smartphone display
- Those who feel that Microsoft’s most innovative days are behind them might want to reconsider that opinion as a string of recent patent applications suggest otherwise. The latest idea from Redmond involves adding a secondary screen on the back of…
Former AMD, Intel engineer pleads guilty to stealing sensitive documents
- Biswamohan Pani, a former engineer for both Intel and AMD, has plead guilty to five counts of fraud centered around the theft of sensitive Intel documents. The stolen information, valued at an approximate total of $1 billion, included chip-related design…
AOL sells 800 patents to Microsoft in $1 billion deal
- AOL announced it has reached an agreement with Microsoft to sell over 800 of its patents and a number of relevant patent applications for $1.056 billion in cash. According to the Wall Street Journal, the move was prompted by a…
Facebook countersues Yahoo, uses several IBM purchased patents
- Facebook has responded to Yahoo’s recent patent infringement lawsuit by filing a counterclaim of its own in a San Francisco federal court. Facebook claims Yahoo has violated their patents covering photo tagging, advertising and online recommendations.
European Commission probes Motorola Mobility over patent abuse
- Responding to complaints by Apple and Microsoft, the European Commission, Europe's competition regulator has launched two antitrust investigations into Motorola Mobility to assess whether the firm abused its standard-essential patents with unfair licensing conditions and litigation against rivals.
Apple offers nano-SIM design free of royalties, but there's a catch
- The future of tiny SIM slots everywhere hangs in the balance as Apple, Motorola, RIM and Nokia continue deliberating over what the next nano-SIM standard will be. Not content with other offerings, Apple is now promising its own design will be…
Facebook purchases 750 patents from IBM, doubles portfolio
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Social networking giant Facebook has moved to increase its patent portfolio by purchasing 750 patents from IBM Corporation for an undisclosed figure, which is thought to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars...
Nokia files US patent for vibrating magnetic tattoo
- Nokia has filed an application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for a magnetic vibrating tattoo that would alert the bearer of various activity that needs attention on their wireless handset. The idea is that the inked person wouldn’t…
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