

Patent Owner with Ties to Intellectual Ventures Sues 100+ Media Companies - grellas
http://gametimeip.com/2011/08/10/patent-owner-with-ties-to-intellectual-ventures-sues-100-media-companies/

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Cushman
I have a morbid fascination with these guys, so I checked out Mission Abstract
Data's web site. It's the usual patent troll BS, but there's one thing that
really stuck out to me on their blog:

 _The radio stations we all enjoy today were built upon Thomas Jefferson’s
belief that an invention, properly documented as unique and original, is
private property._

It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes of all time:

 _If nature has made any one thing less susceptible than all others of
exclusive property, it is the action of the thinking power called an idea,
which an individual may exclusively possess as long as he keeps it to himself;
but the moment it is divulged, it forces itself into the possession of every
one, and the receiver cannot dispossess himself of it. Its peculiar character,
too, is that no one possesses the less, because every other possesses the
whole of it. He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself
without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light
without darkening me._

TLDR: Thomas Jefferson is a boss, patent trolls are sleazy.

Edit: Actually, the other post[0] on the blog is great too. It's a defense of
one of their patents— not really worth reading except the comments, which has
several people who had personal experience with prior art years before the
patent was issued. These guys are such clowns. [0]
[http://www.missionabstractdata.com/1/post/2011/03/mission-
ab...](http://www.missionabstractdata.com/1/post/2011/03/mission-abstract-
data-response-to-the-dave-scott-quotes-in-rbr.html#comments)

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gruseom
That Jefferson quote is not only superb, it's profound. I have seen other
quotations (from the same letter, as it turns out) of Jefferson on patents,
but how anyone could leave this part out is beyond me.

The whole letter is worth reading
([http://books.google.ca/books?id=rVvUAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA180](http://books.google.ca/books?id=rVvUAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA180)).
Among other interesting details, Jefferson served on patent boards and had
personally been involved in a patent dispute.

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Natsu
I guess IV wants someone else to get all the bad press for patent trolling,
but it doesn't seem to be working.

~~~
bdhe
There are 2 things I'm curious about ever since I heard the NPR podcast on
patents.

1\. It almost seems like IV is involved in a lot, if not all, "patent troll
lawsuits" over the past few weeks. Is this a coincidence, or is IV one of the
"biggest players" in this "market"?

2\. I wonder if some sort of patent reform is on the horizon cf the popularity
of the NPR programme and various articles it has spawned, the Google v. Nortel
"drama", the series of Righthaven lawsuits, the Lodsys v. iOS developers
"fight" that is emerging?

~~~
pyre
The Righthaven lawsuits were an attempt at copyright-trolling, though they are
part of the general pattern of attempting to abuse the IP system and the court
system for monetary gain while delivering nothing of value to society.

