11-17-2006, 04:30 PM
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Contributing Editor
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 3,111
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WiFi Trouble Up Ahead
"Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization has won a landmark case against Buffalo Technology, 'under which it could receive royalties from every producer of WLAN products worldwide.' US patent 5487069 -- which 'encompasses elements of the 802.11a/g wireless technology that is now an industry standard' -- was granted to the body back in 1996, and has subsequently been utilized in seemingly every piece of wireless kit ever since."
This is potentially huge - if CSIRO wants to, they can now hold virtually any vendor or manufacturer of wifi equipment for ransom. A bunch of technology companies (a virtual who's who, including Microsoft and Intel) are currently suing to have that patent invalidated, but CSIRO have filed a counter-suit claiming patent infringement. Given the just concluded summary judgement against Buffalo Technology (and from my point of view, that judgement was delivered in record time), who'd lay odds against CSIRO winning out? While this doesn't have quite the immediate ramifications of the RIM-NTP tussle, it does mean that at the very least R&D in wifi is going to slow down or be spent on alternative technologies until these cases are resolved. At worst, we'll have prices of wifi products go up as well when royalties are assessed. I can just imagine the reaction Wall Street is going to get from this. Despite CSIRO being a government agency, it looks like they're going to take this as far as they can - in the rather ominous words of their CEO, "CSIRO still has a long way to go.� You can read up the original article here.
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"A planner is a gentle man, with neither sword nor pistol.
He walks along most daintily, because his balls are crystal."
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11-17-2006, 04:44 PM
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Theorist
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 302
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Sorry, I didn't do much research on this case but are they only now coming out with this argument? Usually you can't pop out of the woodwork years after a technology has grown roots and claim it's your technology and you're owed royalties.
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11-17-2006, 05:03 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 110
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I wonder where they got idea to call patent on something anybody could invent - maybe from Microsoft ? ;-)
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11-17-2006, 05:28 PM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 498
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by sundown
Sorry, I didn't do much research on this case but are they only now coming out with this argument? Usually you can't pop out of the woodwork years after a technology has grown roots and claim it's your technology and you're owed royalties.
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Unfortunately, that's the way things seem to have been going. Potential patent holders wait until a technology grows enough and/or becomes useful to wide assortment of people, and then they sue for past damages and new royalties. Since by this time the technology has become embedded in society, we as consumers are ultimately forced to pay for it. The US patent office is as much to blame as anyone. They'll issue patents for the most ambiguous, obvious things.
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11-17-2006, 07:12 PM
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Banned
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 372
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well, we invade iraq to protect our oil interests, I guess there is nothing stopping us from invading australia to protect our technology interests.
The Australian gov needs to reign in their dog.
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11-17-2006, 11:15 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 175
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This is realy bad news for WiFi end users :!: :cry:
Looks like CSIRO has a firm grip of our b..ahemmm  ops: :roll:
Either 802.11g is getting obsolete in the nearest future, or it will get a lot more expensive :?
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11-18-2006, 12:53 AM
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Neophyte
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 2
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by inteller
well, we invade iraq to protect our oil interests, I guess there is nothing stopping us from invading australia to protect our technology interests.
The Australian gov needs to reign in their dog.
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:roll:
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11-18-2006, 05:53 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 172
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Sweet - we'll all be adopting the new Chinese WiFi standard due to this lawsuit in the next few years then...  Thank you, NTP, for showing everyone that you can sue a successful company for a patent which isnt' really valid (I should've patented breathing and then sued the US government for rampantly allowing people to violate it), and that you can get away with it.
Goodbye, innovation - hello litigation.
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11-18-2006, 02:55 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 175
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by hornetfig
Quote:
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Originally Posted by inteller
well, we invade iraq to protect our oil interests, I guess there is nothing stopping us from invading australia to protect our technology interests.
The Australian gov needs to reign in their dog.
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:roll: |
No vorries mate :wink:
Now that Bush is no longer king of the hill, it's not bloody likely to happen :lol:
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11-18-2006, 04:57 PM
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Sage
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 652
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Unfortunately we live in a world that values money more than anything else. Companies and people alike seem to wait on purpose so they can get recognition and their 15 minutes of fame. It's really sad because not only has wifi grown roots it is rooted within our society and CSIRO is actually willing to risk stopping that. We all lose when companies are allowed to win such lawsuits after a product has matured and is part of society the way wifi is.
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