Patents
Case Update: Anascape v. Nintendo
As indicated in a previous post, Anascape Ltd., an invention and license-holding company, sued Microsoft and Nintendo for patent infringement over their controllers for their respective video game console systems. Microsoft settled…
New Case: Nintendo v. Nyko (W.D. Wash.) Filed June 10, 2008
Nintendo of America Inc. v. Nyko Technologies Inc. Case number 08-cv-907 U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington Nintendo of America filed a lawsuit on June 10, 2008, against Nyko…
Case: Anascape Ltd. v. Microsoft et al. (E.D.Tex. 2008) [P]
Back in July 2006, Anascape Ltd. sued Microsoft and Nintendo over various game controller patents, including United States Patent Numbers 5,999,084; 6,102,802; 6,135,886; 6,208,271; 6,222,525; 6,343,991; 6,344,791; 6,347,997; 6,351,205; 6,400,303; 6,563,415; and…
Case: In re Bilski – Federal Circuit oral argument
The status quo is that video game play methods are patentable subject matter, provided the game play methodology is new, useful, and nonobvious. Never before has there been a case with the…
Case: Tafas v. Dudas (USPTO rules)
Today the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia granted Tafas’ and Smithkline Beecham’s Motions for Summary Judgment, effectively holding that the USPTO’s proposed 5/25 and 2+1 rules regarding claims…
U.S. Patent: 6,264,560 – USPTO grants re-exam request
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office agreed to re-examine online-gaming patent 6,264,560 after the Electronic Frontier Foundation challenged it on the grounds that the technology covered by the patent had been used…
Case: Activision v. Gibson (C.D.Cal.) PENDING
After receiving a letter accusing them of patent infringement, Activision filed a declaratory judgment action March 12, 2008, against Gibson Guitars, asking the court for finding of invalidity and noninfringement. Gibson is…
Article: Hey, that’s MY game!
Ever wonder what the basic principles are for protecting your video game based on intellectual property law? Steve and I wrote this article, recently published on Gamasutra, that provides a brief introduction…
Case: MicroUnity v. SCEA Settles
Word on the street is that MicroUnity and Sony Computer Entertainment America have settled their ongoing patent dispute regarding Sony’s PlayStation products. The two companies have asked for a 30-day stay of…
Second Life ToS: Leave your patents at home
Ok, I’ve spent the better part of two evenings finishing the campaign mode in Halo 3, so it’s about time to come out of my self-induced Halo 3 fog. A colleague of…
U.S. Patent No. 5,482,289: Method of Playing a BINGO Game with Progressive Jackpot
United States Patent No. 5,482,289 Method of Playing a BINGO Game with Progressive Jackpot Issued on January 9, 1996 to Gary Weingardt and assigned to Gary Weingardt Trust. Summary: In case you…
U.S. Patent No. 6,992,654: System and Method for Providing User Input to Character Animation
U.S. Patent No. 6,992,654: System and Method for Providing User Input to Character Animation Issued on January 31, 2006, to Electronic Arts Inc. Summary: This patent issued to EA, discloses a system…
U.S. Patent. No. 5,727,786: Bingo Game Method
United States Patent No. 5,727,786 Bingo Game Method Issued on December 8, 1995 to Inventor Gary Weingardt Summary: This invention attempts to reinvigorate the classic game of Bingo and lure the gamblers…
U.S. Patent No. 6,729,954: Battle Method with Attack Power Based on Character Group Density
United States Patent No. 6,729,954 Battle Method with Attack Power Based on Character Group Density Issued May 4, 2004, assigned to Koei Co., Ltd. Summary: Although the Sam Fishers, John Matrixs, Solid…
Case Update: Konami v. Roxor (E.D.Tex, SETTLED 2007)
Konami v. Roxor (E.D.Tex 2007 – SETTLED) We previously reported that Konami Corporation sued Roxor Games, Inc. in the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, alleging patent infringement, trademark…
News: GNU GPL v. 3 released
Today the Free Software Foundation released version 3 of the GNU General Public License. The new version of the license contains a lengthy patent license provision, copied below, that users should be…
Free PDF Patents
If you’re looking for copies of patents, here are a few resources to help you out:1) The USPTO web site. Great for getting text searchable copies2) Google’s patent site. Great for searching…
News: Patent threat against Linux and open source games
(Fortune Magazine) — May 14, 2007: Free software is great, and corporate America loves it. It’s often high-quality stuff that can be downloaded free off the Internet and then copied at will.…
Case: KSR Int’l v Teleflex (S.Ct. 2007) [P]
KSR International Co. v. Teleflex, Inc. U.S. Supreme Court, April 30, 2007 While technically not a video game case, this landmark Supreme Court case just (expectedly) rocked the patent world. The technology:…
New Feature Added: Patent FAQs
People often ask the same introductory questions when they first start seeking patent advice and counsel, and are often concerned about getting billed for the attorney’s time just to learn the answers…