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As Germany Becomes Europe's East Texas, Microsoft Moves Its Distribution Center
from the makes-you-think dept
Just as companies often try to file their patent lawsuits in East Texas, so Germany is emerging as a favorite forum for patent litigation in Europe -- and for precisely the same reason:
Germany's specialized court system, where cases are ruled on relatively quickly and it can be easier than in other countries to get an injunction, is increasingly leading technology companies to file patent lawsuits there, say patent law specialists.
That ought to place Germany in an enviable position. After all, a common argument from supporters of patents is that foreign companies will be more willing to set up in countries with strong patent regime. So it's curious that the article about Germany's patent-friendly courts quoted above goes on to say:
Motorola sued Microsoft over patents it has on the H.264 video standard, which led Microsoft to move its European distribution center from Germany to the Netherlands even before the German court of Mannheim ruled in the case.
It explains that move as follows:
Apple tried to get an injunction against Samsung in the Netherlands. Samsung's European distribution center is located in the Netherlands, so if Apple would have won, this would have effectively paralyzed Samsung's business in Europe. The judge denied the injunction, meaning Samsung could continue its business in Europe.
This exposes the fundamental flaw in the argument that a patent-friendly legal system will encourage inward investment. However much foreign companies may welcome the ease with which they can sue their rivals and obtain injunctions against them, they also know that they are also more likely to be sued and blocked by injunctions themselves.
This ruling is why Microsoft chose the Netherlands for its distribution center when it decided that Germany was too risky with Motorola's standard-essential patent litigation in mind, said Agé.
Microsoft's hurried decision to withdraw its entire distribution center from Germany shows a possible consequence of this double-edged sword: companies pull out so that patent-friendly courts can't be turned against them. As patent litigation balloons, and more cases head to Germany, other foreign companies may come to the same conclusion as Microsoft, and start taking the same defensive precautions. In which case, Germany will find that far from attracting foreign investors, its patent-friendly courts are actually driving them away.
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True if it weren't
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Re: True if it weren't
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Business Killer
Small companies are terrified out of innovating, then they go broke because they failed to innovate.
The answer is to abolish the patent system. Hold the politicians responsible for maintaining the business killer patent system. Remind them every time they say "Jobs, jobs, jobs".
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They can just get a US judge to order any US company it is in litigation with to not comply with any german injunction.
http://yro.slashdot.org/story/12/04/12/022219/us-judge-rules-against-german-microsoft-injunction
Sounds like.. disgusting is what it sounds like.
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Courts should recognize that the injunctions often do far more harm then the actual harm the lawsuit was originally about.
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Re:
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Wait wait wait....
But why Microsoft is at the edge of innovation. They can "innovate around patents" no?.... or it may be the case that someones innovation is another ones patent, ups... I was here 1 second before you, I win you lose...
So Microsoft is running away from this and small companies should do what? stay and be "innovative"?
Patent system your loving it....
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Patents are the same thing - companies ignore patents (or specifically infringe them) and then attempt to get as much through the market place as possible before any legal action happens. Germany is in the forefront of dealing with these cases in a slightly more reasonable timeframe.
I don't always agree with their rulings, but I think it's important to realize that what they are doing is in fact useful for everyone involved.
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http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2012/03/opinion-the-problem-with-software-patents -they-dont-scale.ars
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You get to join Marcus with the dunce cap on in the corner.
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Nor does it address the incredibly broad patents granted on software by people with less understanding of what goes into actual software or what it really is in the United States and elsewhere.
No, let me rephrase that. Impossibly broad claims contained within software patent applications.
Software patents were, are, and always will be a bad idea and a worse practice. The real pity is that the court that started this by allowing software patents didn't have clue either.
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No I did not do punch cards I was learning my algebra back then.
Since you are more experienced in the field then me, I am looking for some advice...
I learned how to approach and solve problems with logic thinking and how to implement algorithms in different programing languages. But this idea that my way of thinking and the solution to an architectural problem in my software design may trash someones work by not benefiting from it, to me is unbearable.
I don't want to reinvent the wheel every time I'm faced with a particular problem. If there is a solution out there I would like to implement it and reword the person who found it. This way I can focus my energy and time on problems that have no solution yet, thus contributing to the wold.
The problem is that finding the solution in these patents is proving to be very difficult. I am a slow reader, I can read about 300 pages in 1,5 2 weeks but for Social Networking alone there are around 30,000 related patents and if they where 1 page long I'm looking at around 2 years of reading.
Is there a way I can find my solutions to a particular problem, if they exists, faster. Spending 2 years reading about social networking is a waste of time considering it represents only a quarter of my project.
Thank you,
Paul
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Now go create a few dozen punch cards that will read out into a 3270 "I will not resort to adhoms when trapped. I will remember that the point of debate or conversation is to offer differing viewpoints in order to sway those holding differing views from mine."
Worse punishment, I'd guess, than writing it out on something as antiquated as a blackboard.
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Re: Ever done punch cards? I have.
Paul 1, Marcus 1, me 1, you 0.
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No, not even him will benefit from it at some point all this BS will just collapse and bring down everyone involved.
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Injunctions
And for what... Oooh, someone violated a patent now hundreds of people will die from illegal technology.
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