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All posts tagged "lawsuit"


Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Tsera Invented The Touchscreen In 2003, Sues Everyone

Posted by David Tucker in "Zune News" @ 09:01 PM

"A company called Tsera has sued 23 electronics companies in federal court in eastern Texas for violating a patent on touchscreens. The suit, filed on July 15, cites Apple's iPod Classic and Nano products, Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT)'s Zune digital media player, and several other popular devices as violating a patent, "Methods and Apparatus for Controlling a Portable Electronic Device Using a Touchpad," which was granted in 2003."

Well, here we go again. Is it even remotely surprising anymore when an unknown company with no products that I am aware of digs up a years old patent and sues, well, everyone? No, I didn't think so either. Its hard to say what will become of this suit. Tsera seems to be going especially hard after Apple's iPod and they do indeed hold the patents they are suing over.

According to the Information Week article, there could be some hope in the future. There is apparently legislation in Congress right now to make it more difficult to find courts that will be friendly to this type of litigation. Hopefully that will help but I really think we need to see some sort of reform for the patent process. The patent office can't be expected to identify a potential problem in a patent when its issued but it seems that before these lawsuits are allowed that the patent itself should be given a much closer look.

Someone might want to send the judge a memo that the touchscreen has been around since quite a while before 2003.


Friday, February 8, 2008

Dangerous Zune?

Posted by David Tucker in "Zune News" @ 07:00 AM

“In November of 2006, I received an electric shock through the earbuds of my Microsoft Zune. Simultaneously, the Zune emitted a very loud noise through the earbuds and the device began to reset. Since the incident, I've suffered blood and fluid leakage from my ear canal, a temporary threshold shift, and incessant ringing and discomfort. In October of 2007, after eleven months of medical treatment with limited results, I filed a personal injury lawsuit against Microsoft."

If this is true this is very disconcerting to say the least! Engadget also recently reported a similar incident but I suspect it is the same one. The Zune is simply an electronic device and I will not write off this as very possibly having occurred exactly as the plantiff wrote on his Microsoft Zune Injuries site. However, I have some questions nagging me about the statements in this claim.
  1. What sort of electrical shock are we talking here? The Zune battery isn’t likely very capable of producing more than a very mild shock.
  2. How loud was this noise? I’ve been to some pretty loud rock concerts that have left my ears ringing for several days following the concert. I didn’t suffer permanent damage like this. I’d be curious to know what sort of decibel level would be required to cause the damage described and if the Zune is capable of reaching that level.
This isn’t something to be taken lightly so I don’t want to dismiss a claim like this out of hand. However, I like to have more information about things like this before trying to come to a conclusion. I’ll see if I can find anything more.

Tags: , lawsuit, injury

Tuesday, January 2, 2007

Apple Under Fire for iPod - iTunes Link. Is Zune Next?

Posted by Aaron Roma in "Zune Talk" @ 09:00 AM

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061230/ap_on_hi_te/apple_lawsuits

"Apple Computer Inc. said Friday it is facing several federal lawsuits, including one alleging the company created an illegal monopoly by tying iTunes music and video sales to its market-leading iPod portable players. The case, filed July 21, is over Apple's use of a copy-protection system that generally prevents iTunes music and video from playing on rival players."

Apple is apparently being sued because of iTunes in ability to synchronize with rival devices. Obviously, since Zune takes a similar approach, this suite could mean future trouble for Microsoft. Personally though, I think this lawsuit is a bunch of hog-wash. There seem to be plenty of viable alternatives to iTunes out there, even if users choose not to use them. Apple shouldn't be penalized for producing a good product that has drawn users to it. What are your thoughts on this lawsuit and any implications it may have on Zune?

Tags: itunes, lawsuit

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