10 Patents to Kill

WIRED -- The Electronic Frontier Foundation has named the top 10 patents it wants killed, or at least redefined. The short list came from 200 suggestions and all 10 patents are in some way illegitimate and are being used to limit free expression.

From Wired:

"These patent owners have been threatening people that just can't defend themselves," said Jason Schultz, staff attorney at the EFF. "They're trying to claim ownership over some fundamental part of software of the Internet that people use every day, and they're threatening small companies or individuals that can't afford lawyers."

The owners of the 10 patents include some of the biggest names in media and entertainment, as well as some smaller firms and one individual. In each case, Schultz said, the EFF believes the owner has far overstepped its rights under the patents.

Wired lists the 10 patents, in order of importance to the EFF.

1. Acacia Technologies' digital media transmission patent, which the company defines as covering "the transmission and receipt of digital content via the Internet, cable, satellite and other means." The EFF is worried that Acacia, which has already sued several large communications companies, is unfairly targeting small audio- and video-streaming websites.

2. Clear Channel's Instant Live patent, which covers technology used to produce instant recordings of live concerts. The media giant recently bought the patent and is now going after artists who choose to give fans CDs of their shows.

3. Acceris Communication's voice over IP technology patent. Schultz said Acceris is targeting smaller VOIP players. "They're sending (the) patents to investors," said Schultz, "trying to intimidate the investors."

4. Sheldon Goldberg's patents covering online gaming and real-time ladder rankings. Goldberg's attorney has sent a series of cease-and-desist letters to small gaming websites.

5. Ideaflood's personalized subdomains patent. Schultz said the EFF is afraid Ideaflood may try to go after LiveJournal members, as well as others using subdomain addresses.

6. NeoMedia Technologies' patent that claims to control methods for accessing computers based on identification codes, such as bar codes. Already, NeoMedia has sued three developing companies for infringement. "Allowing them to control all look-up functions over a network," said Schultz, "is extremely dangerous."

7. Test Central's Internet test-making technology patent. The EFF is afraid Test Central will use its patent to scare off distance-learning organizations. Indeed, the company has already contacted several institutions, including some universities.

8. Nintendo's video-game emulator patent. The entertainment powerhouse has patented the technology for emulating its old games, something Schultz said used to be allowable under the fair-use doctrine. "A bunch of small game companies are writing these emulators, and they're really no threat to Nintendo," said Schultz. "But Nintendo is being a big bully."

9. Firepond's patent covering automatic message-interpretation and routing systems. This patent, said Schultz, would effectively control the technology that allows consumers to call companies and have their calls routed based on a spoken command.

10. Seer Systems' patent covering the generation, distribution, storing and performing of musical work files. The company claims control over a method of compiling music files as single files for distribution over the Internet, the EFF said, and is targeting small developers of technology for creating music and sound.

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