

Lodsys Offers Update on In-App Purchase Patent Dispute - dave1619
http://www.macrumors.com/2012/10/08/lodsys-offers-update-on-in-app-purchase-patent-dispute/

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jayfuerstenberg
I'd be offering free apps that users unlock via an in-app purchase right now
if it weren't for Lodsys.

Software patents are a cancer and we all lose when somebody can come along and
assert an obvious idea like this is theirs.

~~~
lukifer
Devs need a way to circle the wagons and form a collective legal defense. At
least some of these patents could and should be invalidated in court, but no
single developer usually has the time or money to make a stand.

~~~
madsushi
This is known as the EFF.

~~~
pooriaazimi
EFF is kinda GNUish, while most devs who want to make money are BSDish (I'm
generalizing a lot here, of course).

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OldSchool
Real question: Where's the best place to incorporate and host your site
outside of the USA in order to sell software products globally with minimized
hazard of becoming a target by patent trolls?

No need for it to be some kind of claimed tax haven or supposedly look the
other way for content pirates, really just not worth a troll's effort for what
they try to extract from a small company?

~~~
veeti
It's not going to work on mobile. You are practically losing the entire market
by going outside the Android/iOS app stores.

~~~
jvrossb
I don't think that's what he was asking. I think he was asking about how to
structure his corporation so as to be legally out of reach of patent trolls.

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shredfvz
Your options are fight or flight.

Assuming you have the wherewithal to incorporate a shell anonymously, that's
one option. You might even get away with it. Good luck pitching that to
investors.

Might I suggest you look to the future. What's happening here is as clear as
day: our patent system is out of control. It's out of touch with technology,
out of touch with reality, and worse yet it's lining the pockets of the rich
and corrupt at the cost of forward progress.

What has Lodsys accomplished by doing this? Shown that it understands how to
kick, extort, and squeal its way to profit by abusing its understanding of
antiquated methodologies.

Pond scum.

No words.

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4591002>

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cft
Asking USPTO to invalidate patents issued by USPTO is more often than not a
bad idea ( like in Eolas' case). Forcing the same bureaucrats to admit that
they were wrong in issuing the patent is not the best strategy. The most
resultant way is to have a patent invalidated by court (again like in Eolas'
case), but it's more expensive.

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hayksaakian
This is what's wrong with software patents. Ironically Apple pulls the same
shit all the time.

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monochromatic
What is "this"?

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mmariani
Why fight a bogus company in courtrooms in the name of a broken model?
Nonsense! Just change the business model to something that previously worked,
like shareware. End of story. Back to business.

~~~
lukifer
And what happens when shareware is patented? (Don't say it can't happen.)

The patent system is a mess. I'm not sure if it needs reforming or complete
elimination, but it is hampering more innovation than it encourages, and it's
getting worse.

~~~
mmariani
Mess is an understatement, it's worse than that.

We need to be sure on what we want to do with it, because if we don't, we may
end up in a shoddier spot than we are now.

PS: Apparently it already is :-/ <http://www.google.com/patents/US6330549>

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jcoder
150 developers doesn't sound like "momentum" to me. I wonder how many they hit
up total?

