
One day after winning $532M award, Smartflash hits Apple with fresh patent suit - anigbrowl
http://setexasrecord.com/news/301909-one-day-winning-532m-award-smartflash-hits-apple-fresh-patent-suit
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WildUtah
This case is great for startups, incidentally. Apple has been distinctly
reluctant to support patent reform that would threaten their own mountain of
garbage software patents.

A few billion dollars in bogus jury verdicts -- especially if they have to
actually pay them -- might make Apple reconsider taking the trolls' side in
Washington so often. All we need after that is to get IBM and Microsoft back
on the side of ending software patents as they once were before getting so
many themselves.

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WildUtah
"Smartflash is represented by Bradley W. Caldwell, Jason D. Cassady, John
Austin Curry, Daniel R. Pearson and Hamad M. Hamad of Caldwell Cassady Curry
P.C. in Dallas; and T. John Ward and T. John Ward Jr. of Ward & Smith Law Firm
in Longview."

T John Ward is the entrepreneurial federal judge that created the Troll haven
in Eastern Texas by changing the rules to make accused infringers almost
helpless against plaintiffs and drive up costs.

Cashing it in.

~~~
acqq
He has even the Wikipedia entry:

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T._John_Ward](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T._John_Ward)

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acqq
More about the Smart-Flash:

[http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/02/company-
without-a...](http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2015/02/company-without-a-
product-wins-533m-verdict-vs-apple-says-its-no-patent-troll/)

I've checked some dates:

The first patent Smart-Flash claims
([https://www.google.com/patents/US7334720](https://www.google.com/patents/US7334720))
has the filing date of Jan 19, 2006.

Apple's iTunes exist in public since January 9, 2001.

The "priority date" of the patent is "Oct 25, 1999." It can be that the
original application was "something-mumble-something" and that the later
filings inserted the details really developed by others.

More than that, the patent doesn't appear to have the real invention details
relevant:

"At step S10 a _smart Flash card is inserted into a content access terminal
smart Flash card interface_. The system owner web page is then loaded onto the
content access terminal and displayed to the user (step S11)."

It's about (surprise) the Flash cards carried by the users and "inserted"
around?

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zaroth
Smartflash, not Smartfish! For a second there I was like, WTF, when did
Superfish sue Apple, and how the hell did they WIN?!

~~~
anigbrowl
/facepalm

I am not a smart fish :(

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jsprogrammer
First patent in list:
[http://www.google.com/patents/US7334720](http://www.google.com/patents/US7334720)

Reads like brilliant legal satire.

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stevenx
Just a small typo in the title: it's Smartflash instead of Smartfish.

