Microsoft, Apple and 20 other tech companies have been accused of violating a touch-screen patent. Tsera filed suit on July 15 claiming that several mainstream devices make use of a technology invented by the small company. Tsera supposedly owns the rights to a patent for “methods and apparatus for controlling a portable electronic device using a touchpad.”

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It seems to me that the suit all rotates on how you define the word "touchpad" - if you consider the entire screen a touchpad then i suppose they have a case, but i don't think any one would conclude that when you buy a monitor your really paying for a "touchpad" that has an additional feature of a viewable monitor.

I wish they would be laughed out of court... but these days? I dunno man. You'd think that if this were so important to them, they'd bring it up in 2003/2004. Friggin' opportunists.

They are not disputing the new ipod they are disputing the classic, the one with the touchpad not the touchscreen, i bet they are gonna clean up as most of the companies involved will settle out of court.

I don't think It'll past but anyway...

on a side note, no one noticed that the Philips GoGear was called the Philips GoFear???? XD

@Hamsteyr: Haha.. fixed it in the local story. "GoFear" was pulled directly from the linked story. Thanks for pointing it out.

The article says touch-screen and touch-pad.

Ahh, I see where it describes the patent. Maybe they should be more specific... as touch-screen can be interpreted to be completely different from a touch-pad.

I'm amused that Apple and Microsoft or on the same side of a lawsuit. That has got to be giving them both chills.

lol I myself noticed that i typed past instead of pass >_> oh well. Philips' player must be pretty good to chase the fear away hahaha

Microsoft and Apple's lawyers would probably stop this one no problem... >_> big corporations such as themselves have ways of escaping trouble...