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Losing the War on Patents

theodp writes: "Jeff Bezos and Tim O'Reilly's once-hyped BountyQuest.com takes a beating in a Salon article today that takes note of Amazon's recent decision to license one of the few patents BountyQuest claimed to have found winning prior art for, a patent held by the InTouch Group, who had sued Amazon for infringing on the patent prior to Bezos' reported $1+ million BountyQuest investment. In the article, professional patent buster Greg Aharonian provocatively remarks that "BountyQuest was always a joke...Bezos and O'Reilly were never seriously interested in patent quality...Bezos just used O'Reilly to help Amazon...That Amazon ended up licensing the InTouch patent just shows how stupid the whole thing is.""

4 of 179 comments (clear)

  1. Cannot understand this by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Could you write in English next time please?

  2. gay by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    michael is gay

  3. Thicke Headed by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Offtopic

    Should
    Alan Thicke
    Be Killed?

    Every so often, you'll be sitting in front of the television, flipping between channels, and you'll see one of them... one of those "faded stars" hosting a game show, or starring a made-for-TV movie and you'll experience many different emotions at the same time. Sadness, because you remember how funny they used to be; pity, because you can imagine how pathetic their lives have become; anger, because you realize that they suck now and you want them to get the hell out of your living room. These "actors" or "comedians" are well past their prime with absolutely no chance of a meaningful comeback. They're taking two-bit roles in infomercials and CBS comedies from the mouths of this nation's up and coming personalities. It's time that we come together and end this needless suffering.

    These people can't be happy with the turn their lives have taken. My guess is that they contemplate suicide about 10-15 times a week. All they need is that extra push to send them over the edge. It's more than our duty to thank them for their years of entertaining us by giving them that push.

    Below, I have compiled a brief list of actors and comedians, reasons for their needed demise, and some methods suggested:

    Alan Thicke

    Hosted "Thicke of the Night", a talk show that lasted about 27 seconds
    Hosting "Pictionary" in syndication
    Tremendously boring and unfunny
    Needs to die as soon as possible; asphyxiation from Pictionary marker fumes would suffice

    Marilu Henner

    Hosted "Marilu", a syndicated talk show that also failed miserably
    Starred in some made-for-TV movie that sucked
    Protests dairy products (what did cheese ever do to her?)
    Her voice is piercing, and she babbles on about the dumbest crap when she's on Conan O'Brien
    Drowning in milk would be wonderful

    Note to actors: Don't work with this alien.

    Martin Sheen

    Automatically deserves death by starring in the "ALF" movie back in '96

    Ed Begley Jr.

    Starred in "Parenthood" the series
    Also in that horrid little "ALF" movie
    Should have died on the set of "St. Elsewhere" from injuries due to an exploding latex glove covering Howie Mandell's head

    Bob Newhart

    Starred in "Bob" on CBS
    Stars in "George and Leo" on CBS
    The guy just doesn't cut it unless his last name is in the title of the show
    I personally still like Bob, and he isn't really hurting anyone by being on CBS, but I have to admit that his time has come
    He's also tremendously old, so either natural causes or beaten to death by gang-bangers would be acceptable

    John Ritter

    Hosted "Worlds Greatest Magic" on FOX
    Basic strain on society
    Should be forced to live in an apartment with two women and pretend to be gay until it drives him to suicide...oh, wait...

    Howie Mandell

    Hosts "The Howie Mandell Show", a talk show that's almost as bad as Magic Johnson's show
    He's turned into a male Rosie O'Donnell, and there's no excuse for that.
    Remember that latex glove explosion I mentioned?

    Howie Mandell: Implement of Kamikaze Destruction?

    So write your congressman now and demand that legislation is passed to keep these people from further damaging our society. Please, for God's sake, think of the children. Mark Richardson spelled asphyxiation correctly on his first try.

  4. I am glad by werther · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    ...with the fact that I'm living in Europe. But for how long....?