Patent Troll Sues Google, AOL Over Search 'Snippets' and Ad Serving Tech 83
First time accepted submitter WindyWonka writes "Google and AOL were sued for patent infringement Thursday, accused of violating two former British Telecom patents via Google's search 'snippets' and by Google AdSense and Advertising.com ad serving technology. Incredibly, the lawsuit by apparent patent troll Suffolk Technologies asserts that every Google search result 'snippet' display violates one patent, and that another really broad server patent is violated every time Google and AOL serve up ads."
Funding? (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Funding? (Score:4, Insightful)
Yeah, the snippets patent actually does look legit. I doubt that Google's process exactly replicates all of their claims, though, even though the end result looks the same. Without knowing Google's algorithm, I guess ST has to assume Google may be using the same process or figure their lawyers can make a case regardless of reality.
Re:Funding? (Score:5, Insightful)
I think the difference is in incorporating an "identfiication signal" in the original request that is then processed and determines the file to return. So it's not just requesting "foo.txt" and returning it. But, I would think any program that processes GET or POST data and returns a file based on those "identification signals" would be a violation or prior art for this "invention".
Enough already (Score:5, Insightful)
This never-ending series of X sues Y articles bores the shit out of me. Constantly presenting them implies the average technology reader does, or should, have an abiding interest in these corporate hijinks, these capitalist dick-length spats, the outcomes of which are of concern chiefly to powerful, monied interests and their lawyers.
The degree to which our attention is focused on this garbage shows how much our souls are being sucked dry. Science, math, even technology offers much more than this kind of crap.
Re:Patents (Score:5, Insightful)
That's not the problem. Patents already do expire in X number of years.
The problem is twofold:
1. "X" is an eternity in an industry where "obsolete" means "more than six months old"
2. The patents are being granted on utter bullshit 'inventions,' bogus 'business processes,' and algorithms, and are not properly researched or vetted before being rubber stamped.
Your solution really doesn't solve anything.
Re:Snippet patent prior art (Score:3, Insightful)
Why is there not a 'Sad Truth' moderation?