Will Google TV Owe Royalties For Universal Search?

An anonymous reader writes "Google TV, TiVo, iTunes and virtually every big consumer electronics maker have promised 'universal search' engines that enable users to quickly find and play movies, music and other content, no matter where it is stored. But Crestron Electronics, a developer of home automation systems, just filed a patent for 'Searching Two or More Media Sources for Media.' In other words, universal search, specifically for both local and cloud-based content."

Comments

Re:If they "just filed a patent"...

[icebraining]

This AC is right, the Act does not mean prior art no longer counts. Citing:

A person shall be entitled to a patent unless:

        '(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention; or

        '(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date[3] of the claimed invention.

Re:If they "just filed a patent"...

[517714]

The article indicates that a big portion of the patent covers prioritizing the search results based on a number of factors. One of the main factors listed as price. Google's search doesn't factor price into the rankings, so it likely both wouldn't infringe and would not be an example of prior art.

Have you never used Google Shopping, or Advanced Search? Sort by Relevance, Sort by Price.