Amazon Patents Getting Numbers Off a Check

theodp writes "After two rejections, Amazon was granted a patent Tuesday for the Extraction of bank routing number from information entered by a user, which covers the process of obtaining a routing and checking account number from information entered by a user from the face of a check. The patent application was filed in the week preceding Amazon's Call for Patent Reform."

Comments

Coming Soon...

[shadwwulf]

a patent for the act of accepting money from customers...

The idiocy continues...

What we need is...

[lounger540]

a patent for passing stupid patents. That'll show em.

PAF: Extracing area code from phone numbers

[Steven Reddie]

Anyone want to co-author a patent with me on extracting the area code from a phone number? I'm sure it will take many years and millions of dollars of research so would be the perfect candidate for patent protection. If successful, next will be seperating the number from the street name in an address. Really tricky stuff.

Well, HERE'S one patent they WON'T get . . .

[nusratt]

. . . because *i've* already filed for it:

"A Novel Method Of Enhancing Consumer Privacy, By Preferentially Purchasing At Local Community Establishments, Using Uniquely Serialized Pieces Of Paper Currency Bearing Detailed Engraved Portraits Of Deceased National Leaders".

Soon to be followed by:
"A Method For Consumers To Alter Shopping Behavior, For The Purpose Of Undermining The Market-Strength Of Philosophically Objectionable Corporations".

I found prior art!

[raider_red]

I think I found a prior art that can be used against enforcement of this patent. Text below:

Hello,

Please allow me to introduce my self. I am Natanba Colunga, and my husband was until recently the president of the Central African Republic... ...Please send your account number and routing number to this email address, and the money will be wired in tomorrow.