10 posts and columns on claims

Meet Merton, the Chatroulette Piano Guy (Who Isn’t Ben Folds)

in Media on March 23, 2010 at 1:14 pm PT

How a guy who likes playing piano like Keith Jarrett became Internet famous in a few days. “I guess that’s why they call it viral.”

VirnetX Sues Microsoft a Second Time

in News on March 19, 2010 at 5:10 am PT

Now that a Texas jury has found that Windows Vista, Windows XP and Office Communicator infringe its patents, VirnetX Holding has set out to prove that a few other Microsoft products do as well. Two days after winning a $105.75 million jury verdict against the software giant, VirnetX has filed a new complaint claiming Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 infringe those patents as well.

Nokia Accuses Apple of “Legal Alchemy.” Stops Short of “Chymistry” and “Heresy.”

in Mobile on March 15, 2010 at 8:00 am PT

The rhetorical terpsichore in the Nokia-Apple patent-infringement spat is ramping up–and quickly. Late last week, the Finnish mobile phone maker asked a U.S. judge to dismiss Apple’s antitrust claims against it, disparaging them as “legal alchemy.”

Apple Taking OPTi to the Mat

in News on December 8, 2009 at 12:52 pm PT

If OPTi’s intellectual property lawsuit against Apple is truly the foundation of the company’s licensing strategy, then OPTi best prepare for its strategy to be shaken. Apple is appealing a recent court decision that found it guilty of infringing OPTi’s patents, and the $21.7 million in damages and prejudgment interest that accompanied it.
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Psystar to Apple: Would You Consider $50,000 Cash and $2.65 Million in Unsold Hackintoshes?

in News on December 1, 2009 at 4:50 pm PT

If this isn’t the end of the line for Psystar, it’s damn near close to it. According to court papers filed Tuesday, the Mac clone maker has opted to pay Apple $2.7 million in damages rather than continue its ill-starred legal battle with the company. That’s quite a sum for Psystar, whose total assets, according to its bankruptcy filing, are no more than $50,000.
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Pystar Annihilation Postponed (Temporarily)

in News on December 1, 2009 at 10:17 am PT

Psystar’s 17-month legal battle with Apple may not end in the Mac clone maker’s total obliteration. The two companies have agreed to a partial settlement, court documents show. Odd that Apple, which just days ago seemed intent on hanging Psystar’s lifeless body from the gates of 1 Infinite Loop, would agree to such a thing.
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Toys R Us Takes Ball, Amazon’s $51 million, Goes Home

in News on June 12, 2009 at 3:31 pm PT

The long-standing legal dispute between Toys R Us and Amazon has been resolved in the toy retailer’s favor, but at a much discounted price. In a regulatory filing submitted to the SEC Friday, Amazon said it has agreed to pay Toys R Us $51 million to settle claims that it violated a former exclusivity agreement with the company.

It Was Hard Enough to Take You Seriously With the Word "Phonograph" in Your Name…

in News on February 17, 2009 at 9:19 am PT

You’ve got to love the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry–if not for its hopelessly antediluvian moniker, then for its we’re-on-a-mission-from-God attitude toward its criminal case against torrent index The Pirate Bay. Just two days into the trial–apparently the hottest ticket in Stockholm right now–and already, half the charges against the Swedish site have been dropped because of the prosecution’s fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of the torrent-distributed protocol.
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It Was Hard Enough to Take You Seriously With the Word “Phonograph” in Your Name…

in News on February 17, 2009 at 9:19 am PT

You’ve got to love the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry–if not for its hopelessly antediluvian moniker, then for its we’re-on-a-mission-from-God attitude toward its criminal case against torrent index The Pirate Bay. Just two days into the trial–apparently the hottest ticket in Stockholm right now–and already, half the charges against the Swedish site have been dropped because of the prosecution’s fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of the torrent-distributed protocol.
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Warner Music Boss Edgar Bronfman Wins One: Publishing Exec Dick Snyder Loses $100 Million Suit

in Media on December 23, 2008 at 1:25 pm PT

A rare bit of good news for the embattled music label CEO: A New York court says he doesn’t owe former Simon & Schuster boss Richard Snyder for helping him figure out how to buy Warner Music a few years ago.