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Justice Department Investigating MPEG-LA For Antitrust Violations Over VP8 Patent Threats
from the monopolies dept
This is quite a surprise. We'd already covered how MPEG-LA, the private company that has set up patent pools around web video, had announced its intention to set up a patent pool focused on the patents that holders believe are infringed upon by Google's VP8/WebM video standard. This definitely seemed like a typical shakedown situation, with one company basically asking a bunch of others to team up to demand a bunch of cash from Google.
What's surprising, however, is that the US Justice Department is apparently jumping into this particular battle, and investigating if MPEG-LA's response violates antitrust law. Apparently, the Justice Department (which is not exactly known as being a Google supporter...) is questioning whether or not this move by MPEG-LA and its members represents an attempt to stifle competition in the marketplace. Of course, the answer seems to be yes, but part of that is the very nature of patents. They are, by definition, a monopoly right. So if they want to stop monopoly abuse from stifling competition, perhaps the government should stop handing out so many monopolies.
What's surprising, however, is that the US Justice Department is apparently jumping into this particular battle, and investigating if MPEG-LA's response violates antitrust law. Apparently, the Justice Department (which is not exactly known as being a Google supporter...) is questioning whether or not this move by MPEG-LA and its members represents an attempt to stifle competition in the marketplace. Of course, the answer seems to be yes, but part of that is the very nature of patents. They are, by definition, a monopoly right. So if they want to stop monopoly abuse from stifling competition, perhaps the government should stop handing out so many monopolies.
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The Most Amusing Part
Make up your mind, big-government: Do you want to create monopolies or break them up?
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Re: The Most Amusing Part
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It's great to see someone else who thinks the same way!
Our Lords and masters totally lack consistency of thought.
Another similar point.
In Iraq the lack of civil rights was worth a military intervention that cost many lives.
In the West the mere threat of terrorists killing a single individual means that we have to give up our civil rights...
Does not compute!
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Re: The Most Amusing Part
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Re: The Most Amusing Part
Individual patents may be fine but co-ordinated action by patent holders to rig the market is not.
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Re: Re: The Most Amusing Part
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You have it wrong
Douche or turd, otherwise you are a terrorist.
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Re:
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Seems like a bunch of crooks all around!
Do no Evil? Right...
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http://www.topix.com/forum/world/china/TV2INCQB9NLA1T61G
Google and Egypt
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-12400128
Google and NSA
http://www.networkworld.com/community/blog/watchdog-group-questions-googles-relationship
BUT a SMALL FEW...
Naked shorting drove ON2 stock down and Google stole them:
http://seekingalpha.com/article/154987-google-on2-deal-insights
Class action lawsuits are still pending.
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Second source, Egypt has nothing to do with your silly claims.
Third source shows nothing more than...Google getting government contracts (plenty of companies do) and CW whining about Google accidentally collecting data that people were broadcasting to anyone who wanted to collect it.
Fourth source...Google bought a company. Exciting.
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OK, you talked me into it...
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Nice conspiracy theory - but it doesn't work!
No way could Google avoid paying full value for ON2 by short selling - because that process itself would have cost them more. It looks to me (from the link that you posted) like ON2 had a stock bubble and a lot of foolish investors overpaid for the shares and are now whinging about it.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NSAKEY
http://www.h-online.com/open/news/item/NSA-helps-A pple-Sun-and-Red-Hat-harden-their-systems-863889.html
(I dunno what any of his means. I just started writing "* nsa" on google, and this stuff came out...by the looks of it, NSA own pretty much every computer on Earth. Good thing I'm writing this of a hacked calculator, deep in my secret underground bunker just outside Madrid)
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this is just hollywood looking to cheapen its costs
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Equal Treatment
Ronald J. Riley,
President - www.PIAUSA.org - RJR at PIAUSA.org
Other Affiliations:
Executive Director - www.InventorEd.org - RJR at InvEd.org
Senior Fellow - www.PatentPolicy.org
President - Alliance for American Innovation
Caretaker of Intellectual Property Creators on behalf of deceased founder Paul Heckel
Washington, DC
Direct (202) 318-1595 - 9 am to 9 pm EST.
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Re: Equal Treatment
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Re: Equal Treatment
Ronald J Riley claimed:
But isn’t that cheapening of IP rights removing the incentive to invent in the first place? That is, if you assume that patents are indeed an incentive to invent.
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hook or crook
From the days of the founding of the US patents were granted to inventors giving them exclusive rights to their inventions for a limited time. Those "monopolies" as you say have an end. Those seized by large multinational corporations by hook or crook have no term and no boundaries. Their predatory practices shape the worst type of monopolies even corrupting governments through campaign contributions and other forms of graft. Some, even corrupt the press or those who pretend to be.
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