Appeals Court: You Can Infringe a Patent Even If You Didn't Do All the Steps

Posted by timothy on Saturday September 1, 2012 @07:10AM from the but-my-cousin-did-the-actual-assaultin'-yer-honor dept.

reebmmm writes "In a much anticipated patent law case, an en banc panel of the Federal Circuit overturned existing law and came out in favor a new rule for indirect infringement: you can still be liable for infringing even if no single person does all the infringement. This case consolidated two different cases involving internet patents. In McKesson v. Epic, a lower court found that Epic did not infringe a patent about a patient portal because one of the steps was performed by the patient accessing the portal. In Akamai v. Limelight, the lower court found that Limelight did not infringe because its customers, not the company itself, tagged content. This is likely headed for the Supreme Court."

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Infringe all the patents! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-09-01 07:17 · Score: 5, Funny

Doesn't this mean that any software system with an API could be potentially infringing on every software patent ever filed?
Re:Cory Doctorow FTW! by Anonymous Coward · 2012-09-01 08:12 · Score: 2, Funny

Someone should write up an Apocalypse story about how the word and it's technology was ended though over zealous lawyers and patents.
Word UP! Done. See Revelations... Stand in line... Take a number... Once everyone gets a number a name will be revealed and He will demonstrate "Prior Art!"
Watch out for 7 lawyers on horseback,,,
OMG, I'm gong to patent jail by swschrad · 2012-09-01 08:14 · Score: 1, Funny

I accidentally saw a Samsung phone when I went to buy my iPhone. I'm in violation!

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if this is supposed to be a new economy, how come they still want my old fashioned money?