23
Oct
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Oracle And Google's Epic Battle Will Have To Wait - This Month's Trial Postponed Indefinitely

Posted by in Android OS, Legal, News

It looks like there's finally been a new development in the Oracle vs. Google fight. For those who may be out of the loop, Oracle (who owns Sun and the Java programming language) have had patent infringement and copyright lawsuits boiling against Google for quite some time now. The patent claims are essentially related to Google's use of Java in the Android platform. Oracle claims that Android includes code which violates patents gained through the acquisition of Sun Microsystems.

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The billion-dollar trial was set to begin on October 31st, but District Court Judge William Alsup has decided to postpone the proceedings.

20
Oct
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Samsung Decides Galaxy Nexus Was Not Actually Designed To Avoid Apple Patents, "Doesn't Know" How That Rumor Got Started, Nothing To See Here

Posted by in Android OS, Galaxy Nexus, Legal, News, Samsung

Uh-oh. Sounds like Samsung's lawyers heard about Samsung Mobile President Shin Jong-kyun's little statement that the Galaxy Nexus was designed such that no "known" Apple patents were used or infringed on by the phone. This was probably, to be frank, a very stupid thing to say. Aside from basically challenging Apple to take a closer look at the Galaxy Nexus, there's also the fact that, if Jong-kyun's statement was actually correct and Samsung did design the Galaxy Nexus to avoid Apple patents, that Apple's lawyers would love to quote it at various patent infringement trials around the world. 

This could be introduced to a jury as evidence that Samsung had reason to believe, at the point the Galaxy Nexus was designed, that their other products could be infringing on Apple patents.

11
Oct
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Amazon's Upcoming Tablet Already 'Under Fire' For Patent Violations

Posted by in Kindle Fire, News

What do you do if you're a known patent troll and a major company announces a new device that is sure to sell millions of units? Try to sue the heck out of them, of course. That's exactly what's going on with Amazon's upcoming Kindle Fire, the still-unreleased tablet from the online retail giant.

The story goes a little something like this: Amazon announces the Fire for an ultra-affordable price. Everyone is happy and wants this new device, so pre-orders are through the roof. Acacia hears about this amazing new technology and, being an innovation-stifling patent troll, decides to hit Amazon with some patent violations.

01
Oct
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Court Accepts Verizon And T-Mobile Briefs Supporting Samsung, Denies Apple's Request To Respond

Posted by in Android OS, Legal, News, Samsung, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless

When Verizon and T-Mobile filed amicus curiae briefs in favor of Samsung in the company's ongoing patent litigation against Apple in the Federal Court for the Northern District of California, we cheered inside a little. It's always nice to see Android and its handset partners have friends in high places.

However, the question of how the court would respond to these briefs remained - as the decision is an entirely discretionary one. Yesterday, the judge hearing the case accepted both Verizon and T-Mobile's briefs, in full, into consideration regarding Apple's proposed preliminary injunction which would seek to ban the import of certain Samsung Android handsets.

29
Sep
Android-Money

Editorial: Is Samsung's Patent Licensing Deal With Microsoft The End Of Royalty-Free Android?

Posted by in Android OS, Editorials, HTC, LG, Motorola, News, Samsung

It certainly seems like it. Yesterday, Microsoft announced via blog that it had concluded negotiations with Samsung and reached a licensing deal for the same seven patents it previously licensed to HTC for Android (along with other, smaller Android manufacturers). There were rumblings about just what royalty rate Samsung is paying, but the guess is anywhere from $5 to $15 per handset (it's likely on a percentage-of-MSRP basis - so think about 1-3% per $500 MSRP phone).

When it comes to royalty agreements, rates are usually internally fixed regarding certain categories of IP to avoid confusion about damages in lawsuits, but when there are allegations of continued infringement, the game changes.

28
Sep
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T-Mobile Follows Verizon's Lead, Tells Court Not To Allow Apple To Ban Import Of Samsung Android Devices

Posted by in 4G, Android OS, News, Samsung, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless

Everyone's getting on the peace train, it seems. T-Mobile, in concert with Verizon's filing last week, submitted an amicus curiae ("friend of the court") brief to the Federal Court for the Northern District of California this morning in regard to the ongoing patent and trademark suit between Samsung and Apple. Its contents? Basically the same thing Verizon's said - that denying Americans their 4G Samsung devices just for some silly little patent infringement will hurt 4G deployment in the US and decrease access to high-speed mobile broadband. T-Mobile actually refers to Verizon's brief in their own document, basically saying "Yeah, whatever he said, too."

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After T-Mobile's statement regarding the fact that it still doesn't have the iPhone earlier this week (as though customers needed a reminder), this brief is a pretty logical step for the company to take.

24
Sep
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Verizon To Apple: Banning The Import Of Samsung Android Devices Is Not Something We're OK With

Posted by in News, Samsung, Verizon Wireless

Well, this is certainly an interesting turn of events. In Samsung and Apple's ongoing attempts to sue the pants off one another in every court conceivable, an unlikely player has stepped into the arena as a voice of reason (sort of).

Verizon Wireless, the US's largest wireless carrier, has requested permission to file a brief in the Federal Court for the Northern District of California on the part of Samsung in one of the many lawsuits it is involved in with Apple. Apple filed a motion previously for a preliminary injunction, asking the court, in light of Samsung's alleged patent infringement, to ban the import of four Samsung Android devices (the Infuse 4G, the DROID Charge, the Galaxy S 4G, and the Galaxy Tab 10.1).

16
Sep
billl1

America Invents Act Now Law, Brings Biggest Changes To US Patent Law In Over 50 Years

Posted by in News, Off-Topic

If you've watched or read any of the major American news outlets today, you might have heard a solid 15 second mention about a little piece of legislation known as the America Invents Act. You probably heard that it brings the most sweeping changes to American patent law in the last half-century, and that it should ease the burden of patent filing for both inventors and the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office).

You also know patent litigation is a major part of life as an Android fan, so your interest was probably at least piqued by the passage of this bill.

14
Sep
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Editorial: Was Google's Purchase Of Motorola More About Damage Control Than Patent Woes?

Posted by in Android OS, Editorials, Motorola

If you head over to FOSSPatents this morning, you'll find a rather lengthy article about Google's acquisition of Motorola that ends with the following conclusion:

Google bought MMI to prevent the worst for Google's strategy, not to make things better for everyone else.

In a way, the $12.5 billion price represents protection money. But not in the way most people seem to think.

FOSSPatents

This statement is obviously contrary to the heaps of coverage the Motorola-Google deal received from  major news outlets, blogs, and Android enthusiasts. Us included. This deal was to protect Android from the evils of Apple and Microsoft, with patents.

09
Sep
2011-07-04 14h22_52

German Court Puts The Smack Down On Samsung Again, Refuses To Lift Ban On Galaxy Tab 10.1 Sales

Posted by in Galaxy Tab 10.1, News

Early last month, a German court halted the sale and distribution of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 due to a suit filled against Samsung by Apple. Naturally, Sammy appealed the injunction, but the court has upheld the ban on Tab 10.1 sales, citing that "Apple’s minimalistic design isn’t the only technical solution to make a tablet computer, other designs are possible."

This comes as yet another blow against Samsung, as it has already had to halt sales of the Tab 10.1 in a few other countries, as well as pull its Galaxy Tab 7.7 showcase from the IFA conference last week.

Sammy said that it will once again file an appeal, as this ruling "severely limits consumer choice in Germany” and “restricts design innovation and progress in the industry."

[Bloomberg]

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