legal

Judge to Oracle, Google: Did you pay off bloggers?

Though now eclipsed by Apple v. Samsung, there is still digital paperwork floating around for Oracle v. Google.

Judge William Alsup issued a brief but specific order on Tuesday afternoon from the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, demanding both parties to basically fess up if they have kept any journalists and/or commentators on the payroll during the duration of the case.

Here's the order, which much like Alsup's style in the courtroom, cuts right to the point:

The Court is concerned that the parties and/or counsel herein may have retained or paid print or … Read more

Did Samsung steal Apple's icons?

Monday's top tech headlines are landing safely on your Earthly screens:

The Apple v. Samsung courtroom drama continues this week. The rundown: Apple says Samsung copied the iPhone and iPad. Samsung says it's just being competitive, and has also counter sued for patent infringement. Monday, Apple made the argument that Samsung's icons look the same as Apple's icons. What do you think?

The first week of Apple testimony revealed interesting tidbits, such as how executives liked the idea of a 7-inch iPad. We also learned that the iPhone was first called Project Purple and that it … Read more

Judge casts doubt on Facebook 'Sponsored Stories' privacy deal

A U.S. District Court judge has some concerns about the settlement Facebook struck over privacy concerns with its "Sponsored Stories" feature.

Judge Richard Seeborg yesterday heard the details of a settlement Facebook had inked with plaintiffs in a suit related to the way in which the social network was displayed Sponsored Stories. The five plaintiffs, which aimed at representing over 100 million members in a class-action suit, argued that by displaying their likeness and pages they had liked in a Sponsored Stories listing across the site, Facebook was violating their privacy. However, back in May, the parties agreed to a $20 million deal … Read more

AuthenTec's board under investigation after Apple buy

The board of AuthenTec is under investigation by New York-based law firm Levi & Korsinsky following its pending acquisition by Apple.

In a note to AuthenTec investors this morning, the firm said it is looking into whether the company broke any laws, and "adequately" shopped itself around to potential buyers before selling to Apple.

"The claims concern whether the AuthenTec board of directors breached their fiduciary duties to AuthenTec stockholders by failing to adequately shop the company before entering into this transaction and whether Apple is underpaying for AuthenTec shares, thus unlawfully harming AuthenTec stockholders," the … Read more

U.K. court grants Apple reprieve on Samsung 'copy' case, for now

Apple lawyers walked away from a U.K. court and breathed a sigh of relief following a judge's decision to grant a stay on an earlier ruling forcing the Cupertino, Calif.-based company to publicly state Samsung had not copied the iPad's design.

A London court said today that Apple will not have to immediately place the notice on its Web site, reports Bloomberg, giving the iPad maker enough time to lodge an appeal in October.

U.K. High Court Judge Colin Birss ruled in an earlier case on July 18 that Samsung did not infringe the iPad's design patents … Read more

Congressional Privacy Caucus takes aim at data brokers

The bipartisan Congressional Privacy Caucus has sent inquiry letters to several companies regarding their practices in so-called data brokering.

Caucus co-chairmen Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) and Rep. Joe Bartin (R-Texas), as well as six other lawmakers, yesterday contacted credit reporting agencies Experian and Equifax; marketing services firms Acxiom and Epsilon; and background check provider Intelius, on how they collect, analyze, and then sell consumer information. The lawmakers are particularly interested in the information the companies collect and how they go about it.

The New York Times was first to report on the letter.

Consumer information is floating around both online … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 banned in EU in fresh Apple patent twist

A German court has ruled that an existing ban on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 that prevented the device from being sold in the country should be extended across the entire European Union -- although the larger Galaxy Tab 10.1N can remain on sale.

Samsung's Galaxy Tab 7.7, the smaller version of the popular tablet, had been banned in Germany in September 2011. The Dusseldorf Higher Regional Court ruled today that the ban should be extended to all 27 European member states, on the grounds that the device infringes Apple-owned patents that date back to 2004. … Read more

Sales ban on Samsung's tablet remains in U.S. until trial

Samsung's latest effort to get the U.S. sales ban of its Galaxy Tab 10.1 lifted was derailed today.

In a court order (PDF), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit denied Samsung's request to suspend a preliminary injunction on its tablet that rival Apple won against it last month.

As intellectual property tracking blog FOSS Patents points out, this decision was coupled with another rejection (PDF) of Samsung's request to expedite an appeal on the matter.

"We will continue to pursue a request for an appeal of the Galaxy Tab 10.… Read more

Wife killer, programmer Hans Reiser must pay kids $60M

Hans Reiser, a noted Linux programmer convicted in 2008 of murdering his estranged wife, was ordered in a civil lawsuit today to pay his two children a total of $60 million for killing their mother.

Attorneys for Rory and Niorline Reiser, now 12 and 11, respectively, had asked jurors in the wrongful death case to order Hans Reiser to pay $10 million in compensatory damages to each child and an additional $5 million in punitive damages.

However, following the week-long trial, in which Reiser reportedly represented himself in the same rambling and oddball fashion he defended himself in his murder trial, … Read more

Six LG Display workers charged with stealing Samsung tech

LG Display is under fire after it was revealed yesterday that six employees were charged with stealing technology from Samsung Display.

According to the Associated Press, six of LG Display's workers and accomplices allegedly stole OLED technology between 2010 and 2011. Samsung charges that LG Display also attempted to steal its employees for its own gain.

All told, 11 people were charged in South Korea in connection with the alleged crime, including three people working at Samsung Display.

For its part, LG Display has denied all wrongdoing and told Bloomberg in an e-mailed statement yesterday that the only information … Read more