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Intergraph Injunction Against Intel Suspended For Now
Kilbasar writes "News.com is reporting that the Itanic has hit another iceberg, with a District Court granting an injunction stopping Intel from making the chip. However, the injunction was immediately suspended to allow for another round of appeals, and I don't really see anything coming of this other than Intel paying Intergraph anywhere from $100M to $250M to use their patents."
This is just Intel's way of negiotiating how much they'll pay.
http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,SB103601301 9593598031,00.html
I believe it's $150mill minimum
.....the AMD execs are probably all grinning and giggling like schoolgirls.
Intel is not the only chip manufacturer out there. AMD with its clawhammer is looking to be a better option anyway. Its just too bad teh general public doesnt know this. The same goes for Microsoft. Other alternatives are availible but alas Joe consumer just uses what everyone else does.
Choosing the lesser of two evils is a choice for evil.
"the Itanic has hit another iceberg"
What a wit!
'Course I'm only half right.
Best Windows Freeware
... but does anybody know if Intergraph actually uses their patents to make chips? It seems rather silly if they don't develop anything themselves... Just my anonymous opinion however
Intel is already out $150 million. If they win the appeal, no more lost money. If they lose, they lose another $100 million. Either way they get permission to use the patent. There's really no reason for them not to pursue this.
Cogito ergo sum in Slashdot.
In some ways I'm hoping that this doesn't affect me as both a corporate IT person, and an avid computer geek, but alas, I think it is not so. The chips adhere to the law of spoilage; that if not brought to the marketplace before a certain time, they will actually be sold for a loss. I like the plantiff's position in this, in that they simply just need to wait it out while the fruit rots on the loading dock. I'm not a legal scholar, but what is all this hedging in the suit: I appeal, but lose 100 million, I win, lose the 100 million, you win, the 100 million, plus appeal money, but possibly lose ... oh I can't keep up..
"This isn't a study in computer science, its a study in human behavior"
Please note the injunction has been Suspened not Suspended. This new verb might not mean its closely sounding couterpart, so we cannot assume the injunction has been Suspended.
Here's dictionary.com's take on this new word, and Merriam-Webster's take on it is to blurt out "The word you've entered isn't in the dictionary. Click on a spelling suggestion below or try again using the Dictionary search box to the right."
As a side note, statistics say most new words are borne out of careless spelling mistakes.
"Give orange me give eat orange me eat orange give me eat orange give me you." -Nim Chimpsky
Ok. So I get sued by someone for stealing his non-flushable-toilet idea (which is great concept), and he wins the first round in the court and I am ordered to pay him $42 million dollars. So, I make an appeal, which I win. They decide I did not do anything wrong after all. By this appeal I won't get anything back, but I won't have to pay anything more either. By suing me, the inventor got $42 million for nothing?
The appeal will mostly likely fall through and end in a huge out-of-court settlement for Intel as they did before with Integraph (for $300 million), as $150 million is nothing compared to the cost of Intel delaying their Itaniums when the Hammer hits the shelves.
I've hardly ever heard of Integraph outside of a few lousy graphics cards, or their workstation Clipper chips -- and just how much of Integraph's corporate income comes from suing Intel?
... not after they've confirmed their chips will be TCPA/DRM enabled.
We can only hope that AMD won't sell out in the same way.
"Nine times out of ten, starting a fire is not the best way to solve the problem." - my wife
"It's an untruthatude!"
"Oh, is that like a falsisity?"
"Yes, your honor."
"Oh, now I understandify."
Finally, math books without any of that base 6 crap in them.
Let's make this a discussion about a technology issue by people who know about technology. AMD Hammer chips have the "status quo" better label because of their 32bit compatibility combined with 64bit advancement. This is seen as a bridge to true 64bit computing without losing the current investment in 32bit software. In regards to this patent lawsuit, how will it affect Intel? I don't believe the amounts are large enough to even make a dent in Intel's publicity budget, much less affect their long term outlook for this line of processors. Only time will tell. As for the "General Public", they can go check out the local trade shows where they can get some great deals on *wince* "Authentic Pentium Computers for $300".
I only look human.
My mother is a halfling and my dad is an ogre, so that makes me an Ogreling
They got a contract from a previous state government here in Victoria (Australia) to do this for the ambulance service. It was a massive screwup, with buggy software, inexperienced staff, people at the top of the ambulance department mysteriously going to work for Intergraph after signing the contract with them, and opposition from the ambulance drivers' union, and eventually the contract had to be cancelled amidst political scandal.
Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a rigged demo
--Andy Finkel (J. Klass?)
INTC 17.30 +0.31 +1.82% 77.26 Mil
AMD 6.14 -0.18 -2.85% 5.239 Mil
INGR 18.40 -0.64 -3.36% 1.151 Mil
So who is suffering ?
Semper ubi sub ubi
Integraph. That's like a name o' the past. Will $250 Mil do anything to put them back on anyone's radar screen?
One man's pink plane is another man's blue plane.
Intel should thumb their noses at both patent law, and this other company, and just scrap the project.
Since the hammer is already better, backward campatible, and unhampered by patent problems (AMD paid their bill without whining?) they should just can the project, recall anything that they have already sold, and give a big "Screw you" to all parties involved.
Of course from a PR standpoint, I would cry and moan about how hard it is to be me. But I wouldn't be paying out an extra 100-250M to have a loser on my hands.
then, since AMD would be sitting on their laurels, compete with your own tech that you can't sell. Take some time to really do up the next generation good, and come back with a big punch.
Would not having the next gen be better or worse than having the poorer of the next gen?
(For the sake of discussion assume AMD was winning, as I think they were, but they are both vaporish)
Intergraph is doing wrong; this patent basically covers a crossbar to route instructions to their proper place. Not a super novel idea IMO...
BUT the means are justified. Intel's an immoral Juggernaut. Intergraph was their golden child for a couple years; Intel used INGR boxes to show off their new stuff...
Then INGR (perhaps wrongly) started to go after mobo mfg,'s over a patent they had on L2 cache (which is a stronger patent then the one above). Mobo mfg's shout 'help, Intel' and Intel proceeded to destroy INGR's Hardware division. At that time they were the only reasonable CPU to use for high end graphics (except SUN's stuff but there's no way SUN would sell to a compeditor).
So INGR stopps getting any engineering info and this puts them a year behind in their mobo design (a year is deadly).
This suit's been going on forever. Earlier this year INGR had the ability to stop Itanic production but caved for a piddly amount of money (the INGR CEO, Jim Taylor, basically got intimidated by The Intel CEO, Craig Barrett, into giving them patent rights for nothing). I would've loved to have INGR's say in that room. I would've shut them down out of despite the damn money.
Predatory corporations like Intel need to be taught a lesson occasionally.
Hammer, Hammer, Hammer!
Erm, are you slashturbating?
More than mere navel gazing.
One would think that it was about time that iNTEL started to see where all these patents are going, and how it affects large corporations (which I see as a large bunch of people getting paid so they can live their lives). The computer industry is not being helped by patents right now, and that was their purpuse after all. The be fair to the inventor that is.