patent posts
FeedPosted Dec 23rd 2010 12:40PM by Elizabeth Harrow (RSS feed)
Filed under: Law, Technical Analysis, Garmin Ltd (GRMN)
Thursday morning, GPS specialist Garmin Ltd. (GRMN) said it lost a patent dispute with Japanese firm Pioneer Corp. The District Court of Dusseldorf in Germany found that two patents owned by Pioneer were infringed by a certain functionality in Garmin's software.
However, Garmin says it has already worked out "minor software revisions that eliminate the narrow functionality at issue in the litigation." As a result, the company doesn't expect any significant impact on its ability to import and sell its navigational products.
Continue reading Garmin Slumps After Patent Defeat
Posted Apr 6th 2010 1:20PM by Brent Archer (RSS feed)
Filed under: Bad News, Law, Options, Technical Analysis

Sanofi-Aventis (
SNY -
option chain) stock is trading lower today after the company announced this morning that it has
settled patent infringement suits with Hospira (
HSP) and Par Pharmaceutical Companies (
PRX) related to certain generic versions of its cancer treatment Eloxatin. The settlements will stop HSP and PRX from selling generic versions of Eloxatin from late-June until August 2012. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on SNY.
This morning, SNY opened at $36.51. So far today the stock has hit a high of $36.69 and a low of $36.43. As of 12:10, SNY is trading at $36.69, down $0.51 (-1.4%). The chart for SNY looks neutral and
S&P gives SNY a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold ranking.
Continue reading Sanofi-Aventis Dips on Eloxatin Patent Settlements
Posted Oct 31st 2008 10:25AM by Sarah Gilbert (RSS feed)
Filed under: Law, Amazon.com (AMZN)
I've long thought the "business method patent" to be one of the biggest shams involved, and I am neither alone in this opinion or innocent of involvement in the scheme. Essentially, business method patents protect the manner of doing something; for instance, you might be able to patent your unique way of sorting envelopes. "I start by separating the colored envelopes from the white ones, and then sort by size," you might say. "Then I alphabetize each stack according to addressee first name."
As of yesterday, your patent would be denied. The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
handed down a ruling in the
Ex Parte Bilski case that would severely limit software and business process patents, essentially requiring that these patents only be approved if the patent in question (1) is tied to a particular machine or apparatus, or (2) transforms a particular article into a different state or thing.
If this is upheld by the Supreme Court (which I tend to believe it would be), this will have far-reaching ramifications for technology companies like
Amazon (NASDAQ:
AMZN), which have protected a simple process (the One-Click ordering system) that is only an idea, not a machine. I've always found the concept that ideas could be patented to be noisome; taking the One-Click as an example, it is certainly not an idea that only one individual could ever conceive, and it's stifling to keep other competitors from using it. In my opinion, competition should exist based on the excellence of products and services and the development of brand identity, not on legal protectionism. Jeffrey Bezos may not agree ...
Posted Mar 20th 2008 8:38AM by Douglas McIntyre (RSS feed)
Filed under: Industry, Law, Nokia Corp. (NOK), QUALCOMM Inc (QCOM), Broadcom Corp'A' (BRCM)
Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM) lost a patent ruling against rival Broadcom (NASDAQ: BRCM). That was some time ago. It prevents Qualcomm from selling certain chips in the US. That hurts its profits and makes its handset partners very unhappy.
Things got worse for the wireless chip company. An appeals court turned down its request to temporarily start selling the chips again. According to The Wall Street Journal, "The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, without providing details, ruled Tuesday that Qualcomm had not met its burden of proof to win a stay pending appeal of the injunction."
Qualcomm's bad patent habits have it in court cases against its largest customer, Nokia (NYSE: NOK), as well as Broadcom. That creates a nightmare for shareholders.
Although handset sales may be slowing a bit. Qualcomm has a wonderful business providing chips and software to the industry. That franchise took its stock from $15 less than five years ago to $53 in mid-2006. Disputes with customers and rivals have helped push that share price down to under $38.
With the new court ruling,Qualcom's share price is likely to stay down a lot longer.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.
Posted Feb 29th 2008 2:09PM by Gary Sattler (RSS feed)
Filed under: Management, Law, Internet, Competitive Strategy, eBay (EBAY), Technology

In what may end up being a net positive for eBay, albeit possibly an expensive one, a settlement has been reached in the litigation over patent infringement between
eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:
EBAY) and MercExchange. Financial figures of the settlement have not been disclosed, but a
report from Computerworld indicates that eBay shall purchase the three patents which were the subject of the litigation, as well as a number of other related technologies and developments.
Mike Jacobson, eBay senior vice president and general counsel, was quoted by
Computerworld as stating: "In addition to resolving the
litigation, this settlement gives us access to additional intellectual property that will help improve and further secure our marketplaces." MercExchange founder and CEO Thomas Woolston, is quoted in the same report as stating: "It seemed like the right time to put it behind us."
In May of 2003, a jury in the case found eBay guilty of patent infringement and an injunction was sought and granted. However, in reviewing the
US Court of Appeals decision, the
Supreme Court unanimously derailed the long standing practice of issuing immediate injunctions in cases of intellectual property infringement, insisting that in the future, such injunctions must meet the requirements of a four-factor test.
Posted Jan 7th 2008 12:40PM by Brent Archer (RSS feed)
Filed under: Major Movement, Bad News, Options, Technical Analysis, Crocs Inc (CROX)
Crocs Inc. (NASDAQ:
CROX) shares are plummeting again this morning after news came out on Friday that
the company's attempt to patent its uniquely-styled shoes in Europe may be unsuccessful. The European Union's Office for Harmonization in the International Market ruled in December that CROX's Beach model shoes "lack individual character" compared with other similar brands, according to a Forbes.com article published Friday evening. The ruling struck a blow, as CROX now faces more difficulty in pushing out its competitors in Europe. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on CROX.
After hitting a one-year low of $21.675 in March, the stock hit a one-year high of $75.21 in October. This morning, CROX opened at $32.76. So far today the stock has hit a low of $27.64 and a high of $32.96. As of 10:50, CROX is trading at $28.41, down $4.34 (-13.2%). The chart for CROX looks bearish and steady.
For a bearish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a March bear-call credit spread above the $45 range. A bear-call credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of call options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 7.5% return in 11 weeks as long as CROX is below $45 at March expiration. Crocs would have to rise by more than 56% before we would start to lose money.
Continue reading Crocs (CROX) finds trouble with EU patent
Posted Jan 2nd 2008 12:55PM by Brent Archer (RSS feed)
Filed under: Bad News, QUALCOMM Inc (QCOM), Broadcom Corp'A' (BRCM), Options, Technical Analysis
QUALCOMM Inc. (NASDAQ:
QCOM) stock opened lower this morning after a federal judge in California ruled on Monday that the company must immediately
halt selling third-generation (3G) WCDMA cellular chips, as they seem to infringe on patents held by rival
Broadcom (NASDAQ:
BRCM). According to analysts, QCOM may eventually have to pay royalties to BRCM due to the ruling, which would negatively affect its guidance, though the ruling allows QCOM time to implement a workaround solutions before any royalties can be imposed. Shortly after the open,
QCOM announced the launch of new chips it says will comply with the ruling. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on QCOM, since options prices could be high at this time.
After hitting a one-year high of $47.72 in May, the stock hit a one-year low of $35.23 in August. This morning, QCOM opened at $38.23. So far today the stock has hit a low of $38.12 and a high of $39.80. As of 11:15, QCOM is trading at $38.92, down $0.42 (-1.1%). The chart for QCOM looks bearish and steady, while
S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold rating.
Continue reading Qualcomm (QCOM) unfazed by court ruling
Posted Dec 4th 2007 10:22AM by Brian White (RSS feed)
Filed under: Products and Services, Law, Apple Inc (AAPL), eBay (EBAY), AT and T (T), Comcast Cl'A' (CMCSA), iPhone

One of the hottest names in tech,
Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ:
AAPL), and its wireless partner
AT&T, Inc. (NYSE:
T), have been
sued by Klausner Technologies Inc. for patent violation. Although patent litigation is far and away the joke of the law business these days, this one involves the "Visual Voicemail" feature found on the iPhone, which lets customers visually see their voicemails and go directly to any of them (instead of the standard chronological order most wireless carriers offer).
Kluasner Technologies claims that two of its patents are being violated by Apple and AT&T, and that it is entitled to $360 million in total damages, including future royalties from both companies based on continued usage of the visual voicemail feature by iPhone customers.
From the actions by Klausner Technologies this week, it seems that the company is a patent litigation hound more than anything. The company also filed suits against
eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:
EBAY)'s Skype unit,
Comcast Corp. (NYSE:
CMCSA) and more for violation of Klausner's VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) patents. It wants an additional $300 million in those lawsuits. Klausner settled with more companies last year over its VoIP patents and this year it looks to be continuing the trend.
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