Troll Patents Lists In Databases, Sues Everyone

I Don't Believe in Imaginary Property writes "A Florida patent troll called Channel Intelligence is suing everyone from Lemonade to Remember the Milk for infringing on patent 6,917,941, which covers storing a wishlist in a database. Amazon and eBay are absent from the list of targets, even though they very likely store users' wishlists in a database. With any luck, perhaps one of the defendants will get to use that precedent PJ found the other day from In re Lintner, which said, '[c]laims which are broad enough to read on obvious subject matter are unpatentable even though they also read on non-obvious subject matter.'"

Comments

And Slashdot can fix it:

[snl2587]

Ok, guys: the critical date is December 28, 2001.

First person to post prior art gets a big pat on the back!

Re:And Slashdot can fix it:

[geogob]

Their claim goes much further than wish lists. At first look at the patent, they claim a very basic method of storing multiple lists (any kind of list) of multiple items.

Probably any database configured prior to 2001 could be given as an example of prior art. Even their claims regarding the structures used, the link between objects and identifiers is nothing new (although not clearly obvious). To me it looks like the natural way any one would build such a database using basic structures.

Re:Obviously

[Fulcrum of Evil]

Or that they can make some precedent to go after the big fish with. If I were bezos' legal counsel, I might suggest funding the defense of one of these guys.

November 1999

[edalytical]

November 1999

-- Amazon.com launches its Wishlist service. Countless customers get presents they actually want for the holidays.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=502658&highlight=wishlist

gets paid either way/grant rate has dropped

[ProfBooty]

During prosecution, the PTO gets paid for just about anything the applicant files. That being said, after a patent is granted there are renewal fees.

You would think that examiners would simply allow allow allow, but that hasn't been the case in a while. The patent grant rate has actually dropped in the past few years.

http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/PatentlyO2006059.jpg

This is inpart due to greater focus on quality, and that allowance of an application is now reviewed multiple times even for primary examiners. In the same time period the backlog has grown as the result of a hiring freeze a couple years ago and fairly high attrition, and perhaps as part of a lower allowance rate.