On July 25, 2017, the Patent Office issued a patent to HP on reminder messages. Someone needs to remind the Patent Office to look at the real world before issuing patents. United States Patent No. 9,715,680 (the ’680 patent) is… Read More ›
Tag Archive for ‘Patents’
EFF Asks Court to Strike Down Unconstitutional Restraint on Our Speech
EFF has asked a federal court to rule in its favor in a lawsuit we filed against an Australian company that sought to use foreign law to censor us from expressing our opinion about its patent. While the company, Global… Read More ›
The Death Knell is Tolling for Shipping & Transit LLC
Second court recommends awarding legal fees to defendant hit with patent troll’s lawsuit A court in the Southern District of Florida has recommended (PDF) that prolific patent troll Shipping & Transit LLC pay a defendant’s legal costs. This is the second court… Read More ›
Court Orders Prolific Patent Troll Shipping & Transit LLC To Pay Defendant’s Legal Bill
Shipping & Transit LLC, formerly known as Arrivalstar, is one of the most prolific patent trolls ever. It has filed more than 500 lawsuits alleging patent infringement. Despite having filed so many cases, it has never had a court rule… Read More ›
Photographer Attacked by Ludicrous Online Voting Patent
Ruth Taylor never expected that her hobby would get her sued for patent infringement. Her photography website, Bytephoto.com, barely made enough advertising revenue to cover hosting costs. The site hosts user-submitted photos and runs weekly competitions, decided by user vote,… Read More ›
Stupid Patent of the Month: Using A Computer To Count Calories
This month’s stupid patent, like many stupid patents before it, simply claims the idea of using a computer for basic calculations. U.S. Patent No. 6,817,863 (the ’863 patent) is titled “Computer program, method, and system for monitoring nutrition content of… Read More ›
Stupid Patent of the Month: Storing Files in Folders
Our ongoing Reclaim Invention campaign urges universities not to sell patents to trolls. This month’s stupid patent provides a good example of why. US Patent No. 8,473,532 (the ’532 patent), “Method and apparatus for automatic organization for computer files,” began… Read More ›
Patents Are A Big Part Of Why We Can’t Own Nice Things: the Supreme Court Should Fix That
Today, the Supreme Court heard arguments in a case that could allow companies to keep a dead hand of control over their products, even after you buy them. The case, Impression Products v. Lexmark International, is on appeal from the… Read More ›
One Step Closer to Reclaiming University Innovation From Trolls
Last year, EFF, along with our partner organizations, launched Reclaim Invention, a campaign to encourage universities across the country to commit to adopting patent policies that advance the public good. Reclaim Invention asks universities to focus on by bringing their… Read More ›
Stupid Patent of the Month: IBM Patents Out-of-Office Email
Update: March 1, 2017 Today IBM told Ars Technica that it “has decided to dedicate the patent to the public.” While this is just one patent in IBM’s massive portfolio, we are glad to learn that it has declared it… Read More ›