03-04-2006, 12:21 AM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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RIM and NTP Settle For $612,500,000
http://money.cnn.com/2006/03/03/technology/rimm_ntp/index.htm?cnn=yes
"BlackBerry maker Research in Motion said Friday it agreed to pay $612.5 million to patent holding company NTP to settle a long-running dispute that had threatened to shut down the popular wireless e-mail service. Canadian-based Research in Motion (Research) announced the settlement late Friday ahead of a U.S. judge's expected ruling on damages in the case."
I wonder what the true cost to RIM has been, in lost/delayed business, attorney fees, etc. Oh well, It's over. Nothing else to see here. Move along. Move along folks... 
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03-04-2006, 01:20 AM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Jun 2002
Posts: 498
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Funny. It's not that much money, why don't them pay earlier? NTP didn't ask a lot.
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03-04-2006, 02:09 AM
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Thinker
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 484
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by huangzhinong
Funny. It's not that much money, why don't them pay earlier? NTP didn't ask a lot.
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More than half a billion dollars is not much money??? 8O I only wish I had your job! :wink:
Actually, considering that all the NTP patents are bogus and are being slowly rejected by the patent office, it's a sad indication of how our system rewards extortion methods.
Now all the other patent squatters are going to be emboldened by this news. :evil:
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03-04-2006, 02:16 AM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by daS
Now all the other patent squatters are going to be emboldened by this news. :evil:
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One of the original inventors of this technology in the late 80's, later became a cofounder of NTP, and he is somehow a patent squatter? :roll:
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03-04-2006, 02:46 AM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,202
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Ed Hansberry
One of the original inventors of this technology in the late 80's, later became a cofounder of NTP, and he is somehow a patent squatter? :roll:
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If indeed all of the patents are invalidated, as the Patent office indicates will happen, what would you call them? :wink:
RIM was strongarmed into this settlemtent by a Judge who was sick of the case and cared little that the Patent office's indication that the Patents would be invalidated. I agree this is nothing more than legalized extortion and we ALL pay in the long run.
I think anyone that patents an idea and then fails to implement the idea, then forms a company for the sole purpose of sitting on the patent until someone else comes along and re-invents the same idea so they can sue and take advantage of it is a squatter.
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03-04-2006, 03:05 AM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Jun 2002
Posts: 498
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NTP's patents are not concept only. PPT had a frontpage story to cover it. I expect a few billion at least to NTP from RIM, it turns out only a little bit more than half billion.
I only trust judge's decision. Considering how much money RIM made from those patents, half billion is only a small fraction. I am wondering if it also inludes the licensing fee for future use.
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03-04-2006, 04:21 AM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Aug 2004
Posts: 93
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Of course, the problem when you patent something, you make the details of the internal workings of your technology or whatever you invented public. The question is, do you think RIM looked at NTP's patent files to figure how they might come up with the push email technology?
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03-04-2006, 04:55 AM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 555
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Ed Hansberry
Quote:
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Originally Posted by daS
Now all the other patent squatters are going to be emboldened by this news. :evil:
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One of the original inventors of this technology in the late 80's, later became a cofounder of NTP, and he is somehow a patent squatter? :roll: |
Yeah because he got the patent for the sole purpose of patent squatting....
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For a decade, Mr. Stout and his long-time client, Chicago inventor Thomas Campana Jr., had been patiently sitting on a batch of patents for a system to send text messages from computers to wireless devices.
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It's from the background story posted on PPCT a while back: http://www.globetechnology.com/servl...ry/Technology/
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03-04-2006, 05:00 AM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by whydidnt
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Ed Hansberry
One of the original inventors of this technology in the late 80's, later became a cofounder of NTP, and he is somehow a patent squatter? :roll:
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If indeed all of the patents are invalidated, as the Patent office indicates will happen, what would you call them? :wink: |
Invalid patents? Is that was patent squatter means - an invalid patent? I thought it was someone that acquired unused patents or patented existing processes, then sat on them and waited to sue when someone violated it, not when someone worked on a particular technology most of their career, had a few failed startup companies, sold some products based on their inventions, patented them and then may find out their patents are invalid.
But if your definition is correct, why don't they call them invalid patent holders, not patent squatters? So confusing...
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I think anyone that patents an idea and then fails to implement the idea, then forms a company for the sole purpose of sitting on the patent until someone else comes along and re-invents the same idea so they can sue and take advantage of it is a squatter.
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What does that have to do with this patent? You are aware that a co-founder of NTP worked on wireless email almost all his adult life, right?
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03-04-2006, 05:10 AM
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Pupil
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 41
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Quote:
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RIM was strongarmed into this settlemtent by a Judge who was sick of the case and cared little that the Patent office's indication that the Patents would be invalidated. I agree this is nothing more than legalized extortion and we ALL pay in the long run.
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A jury found RIM guilty of patent infringment. The judge was simply tired of RIM failing to comply with the sentence imposed on them when they were foung guilty. So were most of us I think. RIM probably lost way more than $612M in the years they spent trying to avoid paying for what they stole.
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