intellectual

Salesforce.com and patent aggregator Intellectual Ventures inked a new licensing deal on Friday that gives Salesforce access to some 40,000 of IV's patents.

The deal is the latest by Intellectual Ventures, a Bellevue, Wash.-based company that's made headlines for accumulating a massive trove of software and design patents, along with other intellectual property.

A major part of IV's business includes licensing patents out to other companies, which can use them for legal protection, though it's also made waves for litigating other companies.

Pricing and length of the deal were not disclosed, and a … Read more

The legal spat between discount retailer Monoprice and audio system maker Klipsch ended almost as soon as it started.

In March, Klipsch accused Monoprice of patent infringement for selling a Monoprice-branded home theater speaker system that was virtually identical to top-rated system made by Klipsch subsidary Audio Products International, under its Energy brand. Friday morning, Klipsch lawyer, Dean E. McConnell, told CNET via email that the dispute had been resolved on Thursday.

"The litigation between Klipsch Group, Audio Products, and Monoprice has been amicably resolved," McConnell wrote. "The terms and conditions of the settlement are confidential and … Read more

Online discount retailer Monoprice has apparently discontinued selling its top-rated home theater speakers shortly after being hit with a patent-infringement lawsuit.

In March, CNET reported on Monoprice, a darling of tech geeks for its cut-rate cables, noting that a handful of its new products were virtually identical to rival offerings.

Perhaps the most striking: Monoprice's 5.1 Hi-Fi Home Theater Satellite Speakers & Subwoofer system, which bears more than a passing resemblance to the Energy Take Classic 5.1 system, which CNET's Matt Moskovciak called "the best budget speaker system we've reviewed." Other than the … Read more

Opera Software has sued former employee Trond Werner Hansen, alleging that he gave trade secrets to rival browser maker Mozilla.

The Norwegian company seeks damages of 20 million kroner, or $3.4 million, according to a report by newspaper Dagens Naeringsliv, which uncovered the suit and wrote about it Monday.

"Opera is of the opinion that the former employee has acted contrary to his contractual and other legal obligations towards Opera. Among other things, we claim that he is in breach of the duty of loyalty and his contractual and statutory confidentiality obligations," said Ole E. Tokvam, a … Read more

Patents are either the scourge of technology, or its savior -- depending on who you talk to.

Intellectual Ventures, a company that has quite a bit invested in the business of patents, talked to more than 200 top executives earlier this year, and now says the majority of those individuals are keen on the idea of patents.

The controversial Bellevue, Wash.-based technology company -- which CNET profiled extensively last August -- released the findings of that study, which is its first, on Monday. It partnered with PR firm Waggener Edstrom and research firm Research Now to accumulate the data. … Read more

It's hip to be litigious.

In case the spat between Apple and Samsung, and myriad other tussles between tech giants weren't proof enough, comes a new study that says lawsuits filed by patent trolls last year made up the majority of patent-related complaints filed in the U.S.

The study, which was published by UC Hastings and Lex Machina this morning, analyzed about 13,000 cases spanning some 30,000 patents. It's a follow-up to last October's look at some 100 lawsuits, which found that lawsuits from patent firms were up 22 percent in the past … Read more

A new front has been opened in the ongoing battle between patent trolls and their targets.

A startup, called Unified Patents and formed by former Intuit intellectual property litigation chief Kevin Jakel, attempts to take aim at companies that collect patents and target other businesses for licensing fees or lawsuits. Unified Patents, which made its presence known in a Wall Street Journal profile yesterday, believes that it can achieve its goal by showing strength in numbers. It's currently in the process of recruiting several companies to join the organization and the fight.

According to the Journal, Unified Patents has … Read more

Intellectual Ventures, the controversial patent and technology firm founded by former Microsoft executive Nathan Myhrvold, has sued Canon and Ricoh over printer technology.

In a pair of complaints, filed in the U.S. District Court of Delaware yesterday, Intellectual Ventures accused Canon of infringing on nine of its patents, and Ricoh of seven patents -- both in various printing products.

According to IV, the company approached both companies to negotiate licensing deals, but was unsuccessful.

"When sophisticated companies turn a blind eye to infringement, we are forced to take action to safeguard the value of our patents and to … Read more

Intellectual Ventures, the controversial patent and technology firm founded by former Microsoft executive Nathan Myhrvold, has sued security company Symantec once again.

In a new complaint (PDF), filed in the U.S. District Court of Delaware, Intellectual Ventures accused Symantec of infringing on three of its patents in some of its products.

The complaint targets Symantec's Replicator, Veritas Volume Replicator, and ApplicationHA products specifically, and claims the company "actively, knowingly, and intentionally" infringed on IV's patents with those products.

"We have been unable to reach an agreement with Symantec, and, in addition to their infringement … Read more