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Profiting From A Vague Patent HOWTO
tunabomber writes "IEEE Spectrum has an in-depth article about the rise of Acacia Research Corporation and its plan for enforcing its patent on 'Digital Media Technology' (which seems to lay claim to any technology that transmits audio or video digitally for entertainment purposes). You may recall that there was a story on Slashdot over a year ago about Acacia's threats and subsequent lawsuits against some small adult entertainment companies regarding their violation of the patent. There was also an Ask Slashdot posted a while back by the owner of one of these companies who had received a letter from Acacia Research demanding that they pay licensing fees. Both Slashdot stories asked how long it would be until Acacia went after the big media companies. Well, they finally did last week. It appears that Acacia just had to get enough companies (Disney and Virgin Radio, among others) to pay licensing fees before they could afford a legal adventure against the big guys. DirectTV, Comcast, Echostar, and Charter Communications are some of the defendents. Let the fireworks begin!"
Some HOWTO this was... I have the 2nd step, but I thought this would answer that elusive 3rd step, but it was no help at all.
1. Obtain vague patent
2. Enforce vague patent
3. ???
4. Profit!!!
Hmmm.
Someone should patent the method for profiting from vague patents... then sue everyone profiting from vague patents.
Are there really some companies dedicated to entertaining dwarves ???
Trolling using another account since 2005.
The audio/video feeds of SCO's copyright infringement lawsuits to be highly entertaining. ;)
A goal is a dream with a deadline
1. Patent "digitally transferring text for any purpose at all".
2. Have wet dreams about email royalties from Yahoo, Hotmail, *starts slobbering*
3. ????
4. Drive the spammers out of business
5. Profit!
Yeah, breaks with the "Slashdot-profit-haiku" rules, but who cares.
I own the patents for the following vague ideas:
1) A method for translating program source code into a machine runnable format.
2) A method for displaying a computer's file system (see earlier patent for details) based on the top of a typical desk.
3) A number system based solely on the numbers 1 and 0.
4) A method for having sex with a computer (you know it'll happen one day... and when it does... I'm rolling in the cash)
Anyone have the number for a good (i.e. slimey) lawyer?
-m
#
# Modus Ponens
#
They lawyer simple whistled. Several dorsal fins stopped circuling and headed right for the boat. They stopped in a ring as the lawyer talked to them in hushed tones. The sharks skattered underwater before the boat was suddenly lifted up, and surged forward.
The sailor gazed over the side, shocked. The sharks were carrying the boat on their backs. After a few minutes travel, they spotted land ahead. The priest said "Saint's be praised."
The boat slid onto the beach, and the three men stepped out. As they did another school of sharks appeared, and began depositing fish on the shoreline, before swimming away.
The priest said, "God has answered our prayers."
The lawyer turned and said, "Nah, this is just professional curtesy."
"Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival."
--Dr.W.Edwards Deming
I had a dream:
Ten years from now, I'll be working in a large data center running primarily on UNIX variants. The company tour guide will lead his group in on the balcony, and will say, "Here are prime examples of the Berkeley Long-Hair. It's just about their feeding time."
Then the dumb waiter opens and there's some pizza...
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