Law and Innovation

Fresh and interesting article : There’s no such thing as a stupid question… Although this question may seem to be targeting just a few companies desiring to build a device compatible with a given Android version, it may also give you a short overview on how Google is using Android as a trademark.  As you can read on Wikipedia, Android, Inc. was founded in Palo Alto, in October 2003, by 4 persons: Andy Rubin (co-founder of Danger), Rich Miner (co-founder of Wildfire Communications, Inc.), Nick Sears (once VP at T-Mobile), and Chris White (headed design and interface development at WebTV). [1] In November 2007, just a few months after the original and revolutionary iPhone came out [2] , the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) was announced. On September 23, 2008 the current leading smartphone platform in the world was launched as an open source project. As you know, Android falls into two categories: the open parts from the AOSP, which are the foundation of Andro...

Fresh and interesting article from the famous IP Blog The IPKat  concerning historic patents in the winter Olympic Games. I also recommend you the Gizmodo article (see here ) and the USPTO Twitter account if you want to have a full coverage of these patents mixing new and old technologies. Happy reading! "As Kat readers are well-aware, the 2014 Winter Olympics is in full swing. It may surprising, however, that efforts have been made to link the Winter Olympics to patents. In that connection, and thanks to the Patent Analytics group on LinkedIn, this Kat came across an item on gizmodo.com entitled “17 historic patents that made winter Olympic sports possible”,  here . The article notes that the United States Patent and Trademark Office “is releasing historic patents that reveal how winter sports emerged.“ On the basis of this list, as well as additional digging by the author of further relevant patents, the article identifies the following patents: 1....

Fresh and interesting BREAKING NEWS!!! ( source ) "From: Satya Nadella To: All Employees Date: Feb. 4, 2014 Subject: RE: Satya Nadella – Microsoft’s New CEO Today is a very humbling day for me. It reminds me of my very first day at Microsoft, 22 years ago. Like you, I had a choice about where to come to work. I came here because I believed Microsoft was the best company in the world. I saw then how clearly we empower people to do magical things with our creations and ultimately make the world a better place. I knew there was no better company to join if I wanted to make a difference. This is the very same inspiration that continues to drive me today. It is an incredible honor for me to lead and serve this great company of ours. Steve and Bill have taken it from an idea to one of the greatest and most universally admired companies in the world. I’ve been fortunate to work closely with both Bill and Steve in my different roles at Microsoft, and as ...

Fresh and interesting article from The Verge and the Representative Henry A. Waxman reporting the new pair of bills that have been introduced to the Senate and House to protect Net Neutrality . As a reminder, t his founding princ iple of Internet prevents Internet providers/ broadband network providers (like Verizon and Comcast) from dictating the kinds of content you're able to access online. Instead, they have to treat all traffic sources equally. Net neutrality is enforced by the Federal Communications Commission ( FCC ). As you know, earlier this month, a circuit court ruling struck down the FCC's N et N eutrality rules . "WASHINGTON, DC — Today Reps. Henry A. Waxman and Anna G. Eshoo introduced H.R. 3982, the Open Internet Preservation Act , with a Senate companion bill to be introduced by Sen. Ed Markey, to protect consumers and innovation online.  Last month, the D.C. Circuit struck down the Federal Communications Commission's Open Internet rules ...