Slashdot Mirror
Bezos Patents Information Exchange
theodp writes "Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos was handed a patent Tuesday for Information exchange between users of different web pages. Tough to tell what exactly it might cover ('various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention'), although RSS Newsreaders, TrackBacks, and Google News come to mind. Elements of Bezos' invention may evoke a sense of deja vu in those who used Third Voice or the Annotation Engine."
I don't know what country YOU live in, but here in the good ol' USA the patent holder can charge any amount for licensing the patent. They can charge per year. They can charge per user. They can charge per unit. MPEG was considering charging mpeg4 encoders per minute of encoded video. They can charge nothing and let anyone use it. They can charge nothing and let NOBODY use it.
In terms of court trials over infringing on some silly patent, if you're found to be knowingly infringing you're out triple the normal damages. Oh, and if you want to get a silly patent struck down? It STILL takes a court battle to get a judgement proving that your invention doesn't infringe, or that the patent is invalid, and if you lose, it pretty much demonstrates that you knew about the patent and infringed it.
If I have been able to see further than others, it is because I bought a pair of binoculars.