Copycat, copycat!

As a technologist, the recent Apple vs. Samsung lawsuit is extremely concerning.

I was hoping all of this software patent nonsense would go away, but Apple just proved that the new business model is more about litigation than innovation.

As a company that essentially "stole" the entire desktop GUI and mouse concept from Xerox, you have to wonder how they arrived here.

Ironically, this concept was subsequently "re-stolen" by Microsoft to create Windows -- one of the most ubiquitous, profitable pieces of software ever.

Naturally, Apple sued Microsoft in 1988, a long and bitter lawsuit that wasn't resolved until 1994, when Microsoft won.

In the midst of this, Apple was actually sued by Xerox, a suit that was dismissed.

In the Apple vs. Microsoft ruling, the court stated: "Apple cannot get patent-like protection for the idea of a graphical user interface, or the idea of a desktop metaphor."

They obviously took this to heart, and started patenting every damn thing they came up with -- "innovative" or not.

Now they've finally received what they were looking for -- damages for copying (what are essentially) ideas.

True innovation is always an incremental improvement on existing technology.


However, in a world where 6-month old technology is considered obsolete, a patent that can last up to 20 years just doesn't make sense.

Now, with my project management startup, PMRobot, I have to consider the huge, impending risk that a large incumbent has a patent "war chest" they're sitting on, just waiting to unleash it as soon as one of their competitors are successful.

What are my options as a small startup?
  1. Build a massive paper trail and file as many "defensive" patents as I can, as insurance.
  2. Estimate and factor in a possible "patent tax" to future financial projections.
  3. Close my eyes, cross my fingers, and hope this insanity ends.
I really hope the Apple decision gets overturned, and we start cleaning up this whole software patent mess.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why do people vote Conservative / Republican?

Image
Add another one to my "things that confuse me" list... Why do average, ordinary people vote for Conservative / Republican / (insert your right-wing party here) politicians? I can see voting for them IF: Your household income is more than $500,000/year You are a majority shareholder in a corporation that employs more than 500 people You are a senior management in a major corporation You have the majority of your net worth invested in energy and "defense" stocks But honestly, unless one or more of the above applies to you, it just doesn't make sense. For the average Joe, voting for Conservative politicians is basically the equivalent to shooting yourself in the foot -- over and over again. Their modis operandi is to systematically underfund and dismantle public institutions, and replace them with private corporations they can profit from. The result is an ever increasing divide between rich and poor, creating a cheap labor force at the bottom (more ...
Read more

Manulife CoverMe insurance isn't worth it

Image
As a small business owner, I have no dental or extended health coverage. So a while ago, I decided to sign up for a Manulife CoverMe policy. Their policies appear to be priced well. The website is nicely done, and the sign up process is entirely online. It gives you the feeling that they really have their stuff together. The problem is that as soon as they get your money, the experience goes sharply downhill. It looks like they invest all of their funds and effort into marketing and getting people to sign up, but as soon as you need service, you're SOL. Their claims process is straight out of the 1980's, requiring you to snail mail or fax a sheet you need to fill out by hand.  You would think they could have managed some sort of electronic method. I was able to easily set up automatic payments from my credit card online, but when I needed to cancel these payments, I had to phone twice, send two different faxes, and they still deducted two extra payments after canc...
Read more

Are you actually hungry?

Image
You hear it all the time. "I'm soooo hungry!"  "I'm starving !" But stop and think for a moment. Are you truly and actually hungry ? Here's one way to tell: Pick a food you really don't like , but something healthy. Like spinach. Or broccoli. Or turnips. It'll be different for everyone. Now pretend that's the only food available. Still want some? If it sounds appetizing and you could see yourself eating it, you're probably hungry. If not, you're not hungry . You're likely upset, bored, or otherwise distracted. In this case, try getting up and doing some sort of physical exercise. You'll probably forget about food altogether and start doing something productive instead!
Read more