Google and Microsoft have been continuing a patent war which Google claims is an attempt by Microsoft to suppress growth of the Android OS, while Microsoft alleges that Google is hoarding patents to protect Android.

Specifically, Microsoft noted that Google wouldn’t participate in the recent Novell patent bid with Microsoft because those patents weren’t related to protecting Android.

Google responded to this accusation with their own accusations against Microsoft in a scathing blog post. Google accused both Microsoft and Apple of conspiring to gain control of patents from Novell and Nortel, and to keep patents from Google in an attempt to undermine Android.

The Android OS is the flashpoint for this patent war, which is not surprising given that it accounts for 40% of the US market and 50% of the worldwide market.

Google also responded to the accusations by Apple and other patent holders that are alleging Android infringes on their intellectual property. Google’s legal defense is quick to paint the battle as the rest of the technology industry ganging up on Android due to its success.

Seen from another point of view, though, some in the industry say that Google doesn’t have the right to accuse others of undermining it when it doesn’t own the patents involved.

Basically, if Google had acquired the patents in question it would have been a non-issue, but since these were acquired by other companies Google is accusing them of conspiracy. Also, from Microsoft’s point of view Google is undermining their business by giving Android away for free.

The fact is that other companies outbid Google for the Nortel patents by banding together in a consortium shows how much these patents are really worth.

The United States Congress is in the process of working on patent reform entitled the America Invents Act.   Some commentators,  such as Forbes columnist Timothy B. Lee,  suggest that Google is one of the leading victims of the US patent system which often hampers innovation, and the current move towards patent reform could help the internet tech giant.

Larry Page, the co-founder of Google, is the latest target of a patent lawsuit by Oracle which has requested that he undergo questioning on his decision to purchase Android. This is the technology which is at the heart of the patent dispute, as Oracle claims that Android is infringing on the Java patents acquired from its Sun Microsystems purchase. Google’s assertion continues to be that users of the open-source Android OS are entitled to use the Java technology and the infringement charges are invalid.

Google is also fighting the demand that Page undergo questioning, along with three other Google execs. They claim that Oracle is making a last minute, desperate push to win the case through the use of depositions. They have already forced a deposition by Google senior VP of mobile Andy Rubin, who co-founded the Android startup in 2005.

Page could be ordered by a US judge to testify in the patent case, although a decision on the issue hasn’t been made yet. Google has also requested that the CEO of Oracle, Larry Ellison, be deposed in this case. It’s likely that Page may take the stand as District Court Judge Alsup has previously questioned whether Google’s intent was to avoid licensing fees by infringing on Sun patents.

Alsup noted in court documents that it’s possible Google recognized it would infringe on some Java patents early on, since they had entered into licensing agreements with Sun specifically for Android use. The fact that they later abandoned the negotiations when they realized the costs were too high does look suspicious. Nonetheless, Google continues to assert that before Sun was acquired by Oracle, Sun proclaimed that Java would be open source, thereby permitting any software developer to use it. Google and Oracle were both advised to address the issue at the next hearing in San Francisco.

The German pharmaceutical giant Bayer has lost a European patent dispute over its top-selling birth control pill Yasmin. The drug is a blockbuster for the company, so this decision poses a serious threat to its revenues. The decision by the European Patent Office comes after competitor Hexal appealed a decision in 2006 to confirm the patent.

Bayer had already lost patent protection for Yasmin in the United States, and took a large revenue hit as a result. The loss of European patent protection will take effect immediately, so it’s likely that generic versions of Yasmin will be available in European pharmacies soon. Bayer is also facing threats from generic rivals on other top-selling drugs, such as its Betaseron injection for multiple sclerosis. An interesting side note is that the users of Yasmin were recently found to face a higher risk of blood clots than users of other birth control pills.

Bayer refused to comment on its next step following the adverse decision by the European Patent Office, but a Bayer spokesperson suggested that the company would focus on maintaining their market leadership in Europe by focusing on new product launches. Judging by the market reaction in the US following loss of patent protection there, it’s doubtful whether new products will be able to fully replace the revenue lost due to generic competition for Yasmin.

In the US last year, sales of the product declined over 15%. The company’s stock has already taken a hit following this news, as investors are pricing in competition from a copycat generic Hexal drug in the second half of this year. However, some analysts expect that the revenue hit won’t be as severe as it was following loss of the US patent due to pricing differences in these markets. In any event, the contraceptive Yasmin is still Bayer’s highest selling product in the pharmaceutical sector.

IronKey Inc, a California-based data protection firm, is now dealing with two intellectual property related lawsuits in a federal court. The company is well known for their robust thumb drives which meet military standards for data protection.

The company is being sued by San Jose-based software firm Securework Inc, which also has addresses in Hong Kong and Newark, New Jersey. Securework alleges that IronKey licensed their software in 2006 and paid $30,000 in royalties, but failed to pay further royalties in violation of their agreement and failed to acknowledge the Securework copyright on products featuring the licensed software. It is seeking unspecified damages and wants a jury trial, as well as the destruction or impound of products including the disputed software.

The second patent lawsuit against IronKey was filed by three companies, including Trek Technology (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Trek 2000 International Ltd, and S-Com System (Singapore) Pte Ltd. The complaint was filed on June 14 at the US District Court of California’s Central District.

A flaw to IronKey’s business model has always been their network of 22 servers, known as SecureSessions, which are globally distributed and communicate with their devices. This operational structure is dangerous because a single patent lawsuit can negatively impact all of the IronKey devices, both those previously sold and those still up for sale.

This seems to be what is happening now, as SecureWorks and other companies seek to shut down all sales and operation of IronKey devices containing their software.

IronKey has earned a great reputation for providing top-notch data protection with no major incidents, until now. The company was started with funding from a US Federal Grant, and maintains close ties with the US government. They often contract with the government to manufacture various devices, so these may also be affected if the lawsuit succeeds.

A group of six Girl Scouts from Ames, Iowa came up with an innovative idea for a prosthetic hand which has earned them a preliminary patent. It began when the girls entered the worldwide FIRST LEGO League science and engineering challenge, an event focused on applying robotics to medical issues.

After one of the girl’s mothers and team coaches met another mother from Duluth, GA online and found out that her 3 year old daughter had been born without fingers, the girls decided to commit their project to helping her. Part of the Girl Scout mission is to help people at all times, and the group of six girls wanted to demonstrate that mission in reality. After meeting with prosthetic manufacturers and doctors, and spending at least 180 hours of research and work on their design idea, they were able to create what they call “the BOB-1.” Formed from a pencil grip, Velcro and moldable plastic, it was very cheap to make as it cost them less than $10.

The team of six teen girls, who call themselves the “Flying Monkeys”, won $20,000 for their idea in the FIRST LEGO League challenge. The money was put toward a provisional patent on their invention, and also used to make a slightly enhanced version entitled the BOB 1.2. The mother of the young girl who inspired the project said her daughter was ecstatic about the device.

Danielle, who was born without fingers on her right hand, is now able to write and draw with that hand thanks to the BOB. The girls went to Washington, DC to receive a provisional patent on the device, and it could take up to three years to secure the final patent. They believe it could have broad application in helping a variety of people, including children like Danielle with birth defects, war veterans, and elderly people with arthritis.

See ABC news cover of the group here.

A new patent by the leading US tech company, Apple Inc., is aimed at stopping concert piracy via mobile devices, which could potentially help the music and film industries to prevent illegal recordings of concerts and movies playing in theaters.

The patent involves an invisible infrared sensor technology that would be integrated into mobile iOS devices with a built-in camera. The infrared sensor in the mobile phone could be used to search for another signal that would determine whether it is permissible to activate and record footage with the phone’s camera or not.

The recording industry could benefit from this technology by disabling cameras during music concerts as they send infrared signals from the stage. Copyright restrictions could be enforced immediately once the new technology senses a live performance or a theater-screen in its surroundings by using the built-in audio, light and infrared transmission methodology.

This would effectively disable recordings that could be shared online in violation of copyright laws.

Not surprisingly, this move has already met with lots of opposition within the mobile device community as users fear they will be totally at the mercy of their camera’s built-in sensor when it comes to taking pictures and recording videos. However, Apple Inc. hasn’t made any official statement regarding when or how they will implement it in their future devices such as the Apple iPhone.

Many analysts believe there is a good chance that the company will introduce the technology in their upcoming devices to ensure a healthy relationship with their partners in the music and entertainment industries. There are also other potential uses for the patented technology, including the transmission of information to a phone in museums and other large venues.

The new Apple patent comes at a time when Apple has just reportedly signed several agreements with major record labels and production houses for its iCloud storage system.

Nortel’s patent portfolio of over 6,000 patents is up for grabs this month.  An auction is to be held on the 2oth of June behind closed doors at a New York law firm.  The patents cover multiple wireless technologies including LTE, a next generation mobile data transfer technology that will increase the speed and capacity of mobile phone networks.
Google has disclosed the opening bid of $900 million, but the final price may reach into the billions.  The high valuation stems from the broad nature of the patents and their popular deployment.  The owners of this intellectual property will have a noticeable advantage in the extremely competitive mobile marketplace.
The anticipation of this auction highlights a growing industry of brokers, lawyers, and investors who buy and sell intellectual property as high risk investments.  A rash of companies have sprung up who solely purchase patents in order to license the technologies or sue other businesses for patent infringement.  Owning the right patents can yield large returns, but determining the valuation of patents before the purchase is extremely difficult, making it a volatile investment.  Buying patents without doing thorough market research or developing the product yourself will most likely have a negative result.

Our agents have returned from the National Hardware Show (NHS) in Las Vegas, Nevada and report it was a huge success!  With over 2,300 vendors in addition to hundreds of attending companies, our licensing agents were busy presenting products and making new contacts.   The three day event gave us a great opportunity to market our client’s ideas to organizations interested in adding new products to their inventory.  This year’s show added two new categories;  outdoor recreation and pet products,  increasing the tradeshow’s  spectrum of industries, and allowing us to display even more products.  The event now covers 9 manufacturing categories and is one of the largest networking events in the world.

Our new booth attracted several companies we haven’t seen before,  in addition to our existing contacts,  a welcomed indication that economic recovery is progressing.  Our agents networked with representatives from several new hardware suppliers and gained invaluable leads in which to submit products.

Invention Resource International was also featured in the Hardware & Housewares Review, a popular publication in the industry.  The article  highlighted our services and informed companies of our booth location – driving even more interest in the hardware and houseware categories.

The United States Patent & Trademark Office has announced it’s newest initiative, the Full First Action Interview Pilot Program.  Inventors seeking a utility patent in all technology fields can now request an initial interview before the first office action.  This opens communication between the examiner and patentee prior to the formal office action, allowing them to discuss the patentability of their product and potential problems with the patent application.

In addition to the enhanced interaction with the patent examiner, participants are expected to benefit from an increased chance of allowance on their first office action.  Inventors whom took part in the preceding program, the Enhanced First Action Interview Program, saw a 24% increase in allowed applications.  This increased rate reduces the overall time taken to receive pendancy and increases the USPTO efficiency.