“Intertrust Technologies Corp., a Silicon Valley company that was an early pioneer in digital copyright protection, says Apple Inc. is violating its patents,” Don Clark reports for The Wall Street Journal.
“The company on Wednesday said it filed a suit in U.S. District Court in Northern California, alleging that Apple infringed 15 of its products. Intertrust said the suit covers a broad range of Apple products, including the iPhone and iPad, Mac computers and laptops, Apple TV, and services that include iTunes, iCloud and the Apple App Store,” Clark reports. “Intertrust has some influential backers. Sony Corp. and Royal Philips each hold 49.5% stakes in the company, which was publicly held from 1999 to 2003. It also has a track record of successfully enforcing its intellectual property. Microsoft Corp, for example, in 2004 agreed to pay Intertrust $440 million to settle a broad patent infringement suit.”
Read more in the full article here.
Related article:
Microsoft’s settlement with InterTrust over DRM could put Apple at disadvantage – April 12, 2004
Great. Another example of our beloved patent system driving innovation and protecting creativity.
And they let Samsung steal Apple’s IP in every device they rip off from Apple. I miss Steve Jobs. He scared the little trolls back under the bridges and stones where they belong.
I would buy those companies who have patents that look likely to Apple would have to pay royalties. It would cost about the same and also mean Apple could apply those same patents to their competitors.
They don’t say what Apple is supposedly infringed. Only alleging all of Apple’s products supposedly are involved. Patent troll obviously.
Apple has been a champion of “digital rights management” and this will be resolved. However, I find it hard AGAIN to understand patents being spread around like cow dung in a farmers field for ideas that have no product or markable product associated with it. It is just a shake down of an idea that anyone will need to use and would come up with.
I think I am going to get a patent for cooling products and devices with “air”. I could shake everyone down that lives on the planet when I get this patent. Then I will get one for inflating products with “air” in case there is someone I didn’t get money from the first time. That will cover breathing when you inhale too.
Apple has been a champion of *ending* DRM. iTunes only had DRM during the early years because the labels demanded it. Apple just had the good sense to make FairPlay DRM as friendly as possible (the lesser of evils).
DRM on music files was eventually eliminated because of Apple. The company broke that anti-consumer stranglehold just as they later broke the iron control of the cell phone companies (remember $2.99 ringtones and all of the convenience charges and lack of functionality?)
+1
Can’t apple just buy them and turn around and sue Goosung with it?
It looks like some one other Wall Street has figured out Apple has $137 billion.
What I’d like to see:
Patent trolls suing government Patent Offices for NOT DOING THEIR JOB, certainly in the cases of conflicting patents.