#Rovio, #EA Urge Court To Let #Apple Join #Lodsys Patent Suit

Electronic Arts and Angry Birds developer Rovio have submitted a federal court filing insisting that Apple should be allowed to intervene in a patent-infringement lawsuit against developers of iPhone applications.

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/36490/Rovio_EA_Urge_Court_To_Let_Apple_Join_Lodsys_Patent_Suit.php

Problem Patent Trolls Inspire New Legislation

Problem Patent Trolls Inspire New Legislation - U.S. Politics Today - News Media Monitoring:

"Patent trolls have been an especially difficult problem for companies to manage. They are reminiscent of cyber-squatters who bought up Internet domain names during the dot-com boom, and, because of patent trolls' behavior, patent-infringement litigation is growing at an incredible pace. In the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas (where many of patent-infringement lawsuits are initiated), filings in 2010 increased by 20 percent compared to 2009.

In addition, new patent cases in the Eastern District outnumbered new filings in every other federal district. The total number of new defendants (3,879) marks a 70 percent increase from 2009 and is more than four times the next highest number for new defendants (884), in the District of Delaware.

The Federal Trade Commission recently issued a report indicating that patent trolls appear focused on hindering companies that have actually innovated rather than 'developing and transferring technology' themselves. It also notes that one of the primary problems exploited by patent trolls is the vagueness in patent applications. Some patents are intentionally vague and, as a result, often do not serve their purpose in giving notice about what the covers."

iOS devs put out a call to unite against Lodsys, other patent trolls

iOS devs put out a call to unite against Lodsys, other patent trolls:

Move over Apple: some independent app developers plan to begin banding together to fight off lawsuits brought by Lodsys and its ilk on their own. On Monday, renowned iOS developer Mike Lee announced the Appsterdam Legal Defense Team, which will be made up of indie developers fighting patent trolls as a single unit and funded by contributions from participating companies. The goal, aside from the obvious one of being free from frivolous patent lawsuits, is to become 'the ants of East Texas, minding their business until someone invades their anthill.'

When Patents Attack! | This American Life

When #Patents Attack!:

"Why would a company rent an office in a tiny town in East Texas, put a nameplate on the door, and leave it completely empty for a year? The answer involves a controversial billionaire physicist in Seattle, a 40 pound cookbook, and a war waging right now, all across the software and tech industries."