Industry group might buy Commerce One patents
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A move is afoot to form an industry consortium to buy about 40 patents that are among the assets of bankrupt Commerce One.
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A group of technology companies is offering to share some of its patents to encourage the development of environmentally friendly technologies.IBM, Nokia, Sony, and bulk-mailing equipment manufacturer Pitney-Bowes have together donated patents to the Eco-patent Commons, an organization set up to share the patents for technology with environmental benefits.Any organization willing to donate a patent for environmentally friendly technology to the commons can join the group. The patents are made available for use by members and nonmembers alike.So far, patents pledged to the commons cover fields such as waste water treatment, air purification, cell-phone recycling and reducing printer ink consumption. IBM has pledged 27 patents, Pitney Bowes two, and Nokia and Sony one each.The Eco-patent Commons will be administered by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, a group which brings together CEOs in industries such as cement, electrical utilities, timber, mining and transport.The group wants businesses to donate patents for technologies that have a positive environmental impact, but that are not related to their core business.It hopes that access to patents in the Commons will enable businesses facing environmental challenges that have already been solved by others to develop cleaner, less energy-intensive products as a result.The move is inspired by the success of the free and open-source software sector, where the sharing information has resulted in the creation of many new products, the group said.Together, the companies apply for thousands of patents each year. IBM in particular regularly tops the league tables for&#160;most filings with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
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British company claims four online retailers are using its patented technology.
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A group called JGR Acquisition made the winning, &#36;15.5 million bid Monday for a batch of obscure but potentially important patents covering technologies for Internet business transactions.
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The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a case that could make it harder to obtain patents, with technology giants Microsoft Corp. and Cisco Systems Inc. supporting a change.
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During the tech bust, GSI Commerce Inc., increased business by buying distressed online retailers. Now the company hopes it can raise its growth through an acquisition of a different kind.
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The company is also considering packaging and licensing some of the functional parts currently available on Jazz.
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Patent cross-licence deal cover all but cutting-edge techs
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(InfoWorld) - A Georgia technology vendor said Wednesday it is looking to collect money from three patents on targeted online advertising either by selling the patents or by collecting licensing fees from dozens of online advertising firms. Concurrent Computer, which sells Linux-based software to government and enterprise customers, obtained the three patents as part of its acquisition of Everstream Holdings in October 2005, said Kirk Somers, the company's executive vice president. Concurrent has begun sending letters to more than 50 companies, including Microsoft and Google, suggesting they may be using the patented technology without a license, Somers said. The patents cover virtually all methods of targeted advertising on the Internet, the company said. Concurrent's primary goal is to sell the three patents to another company interested in targeted online advertising, Somers said. The company has hired IPinvestments Group, an intellectual property business advisory firm, to help it sell the patents, and its goal would be to sell the patents by the end of the year. The company's aim is to "ensure the continued growth of this market while maximizing the value of our intellectual property," Concurrent President and CEO Gary Trimm said in a statement. But Concurrent is also considering keeping the patents and attempting to collect licensing fees, possibly through patent infringement lawsuits, Somers said. "We haven't ruled out the hammer technique completely," he said. "The patents are key to [several companies'] strategies." Right now, Concurrent would prefer to avoid lawsuits, Somers said. The company wants to work out agreements where "we all can benefit," he added. The patents relate to systems and methods of bundling stored data, such as music, video, and television content, with stored advertisements and delivering them to users based on user requests or profiles. The portfolio of related patents includes three U.S. patents, three Canadian patents, and U.S. and foreign patent applications. The U.S. patents included in the portfolio are No. 5,931,901, related to programmed music on demand from the Internet; No. 6,038,591, also related to programmed music packaged with advertisements; and No. 6,161,142, for a method and system for using a communication network to supply targeted streaming advertising in interactive media. The first patent was filed in March 1997, and the other two are continuations of the first patent, Concurrent said. Concurrent expects that some companies may challenge the patents, especially in the case of infringement lawsuits, Somers said. The company has taken the last year and a half to investigate the patents, and it believes they are valid, he said. "We didn't find any problems with them," he added. A Google representative wasn't immediately available to comment on the patents. Asked about the value of the patents, Somers declined to get more specific than to say it was significant. "I don't want to unrealistically set expectations at the high or low side," he said. Concurrent's patent claims come two weeks after Microsoft officials complained that Linux and other open-source projectsÂ infringe on 235 of its patents. Concurrent's claims are "completely independent" of the Microsoft claims against Linux, Somers said. "We've been working on this a long time," he added.
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SAN FRANCISCO - CosmoCom Inc., a software vendor that holds a pair of U.S. patents on IP (Internet Protocol) contact center technology, is now considering moves to defend those patents, company officials said Monday.
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Blog: The companies are about to face off in a federal appeals court over their ongoing patent dispute.
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Winning approval for a proposed merger of the nation's two satellite-radio companies turns on whether regulators buy their argument that iPods, Internet radio and other new technologies have expanded so dramatically that a monopoly would not harm consumers' choices or purses.
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Johnson &amp; Johnson, the US medical and consumer goods group, is in advanced discussions to buy Guidant, a maker of medical devices, in a deal that could be worth about $24bn (Â£12bn).
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New business group will work with content owners in effort to build products providing digital media throughout the home.
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The company's lead drug will enter phase 1 trials, bringing potential good fortune to investors.
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Linux maker hints it may convince Microsoft to honor its patents, as with other Linux vendors.
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Devices could be available to consumers next year, company says.