back to article Samsung backside-bitten by emoticon patent trollery

Samsung’s patent lawsuit against Apple over emoticons has bitten the smartphone maker in the behind, with a patent troll hoarder called Varia now suing Samsung over the same thing. At the bottom of it all is our relentless pursuit of the laziest possible way to carry out the most mundane activities. Since emoticons are …

COMMENTS

This topic is closed for new posts.
  1. mhoulden
    WTF?

    Isn't this what registered designs are supposed to be for? "Their drawing looks like ours" is *not* grounds for patent infringement.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Only in America, la la la la la

    2. ItsNotMe
      Devil

      I plan on getting a patent for filing patents...

      ...that way...I can sue EVERYONE on the planet who has ever filed for a patent.

      And look out Apple...I'm coming after you first.

  2. Dazed and Confused

    key?

    What key?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: key?

      A smiley skeleton key ¯\(º o)/¯

  3. DN4
    Go

    Great

    Now please sue everyone else who doesn't make inserting emoticons extremely painful and the world will be a better place.

  4. Craigness

    Prior art

    Filing date for the '731 patent: September 12, 2005.

    My Palm Treo had this before then. Yahoo messenger too, but that wasn't mobile. Everything has to be patented again for mobile.

  5. Graham Marsden
    Facepalm

    Is there a smiley for...

    ... hoist by your own petard?

    1. This post has been deleted by its author

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Is there a smiley for...

      Nope but there is a large Dick smiley, or it that an award for the biggest Dick award?

    3. Zimmer
      Mushroom

      Re: Is there a smiley for...

      Try this one.... BIG petard...

      1. Field Marshal Von Krakenfart

        Re: Is there a smiley for...

        Yeah, here's the text smiley for that

        ======D *

  6. A. Coatsworth Silver badge
    Thumb Down

    Question (AKA WTF?!)

    So Samsung got a patent. It infringes an older patent, but how could Samsung know?

    I would have guessed it's the Patent Office's job doing a background this kind of situation, not the patent submitter... is it?

    Or can the office just say "tough luck" and get with it?

    I'm not defending Samsung (this whole patent war is beyond stupid) but I think it's unfair that they, or anyone else, lose a patent because of what looks like a gross ineptitude of the patent office

    1. Andrew Jones 2
      Thumb Down

      Re: Question (AKA WTF?!)

      My understanding is that you pay the patent office a sum of money and file an application - after a stupid amount of time - the patent is granted regardless of whether other patents exist that may be of a similar nature. The courts are then left to determine if the patent is even valid.

    2. Wile E. Veteran
      Devil

      Re: Question (AKA WTF?!)

      I think it's unfair that they, or anyone else, lose a patent because of what looks like a gross ineptitude of the patent office

      I think it's unfair so many GET patents due to the gross incompetence of the patent office.

      I just patented representing instructions and data using 1's and 0's. You all owe me TRILLIONS! Bwa-ha-ha!

    3. frank ly

      Re: Question (AKA WTF?!)

      I have an idea........ Samsung should sue the US patent office for false representations which led Samsung to spend money of a court case and also placed it in a position where it could be sued by Varia. Then Varia could sue the patent office for the same false representation that caused it to spend money suing Samsung. Then Apple could...... oh, wait a minute.

  7. Flat Phillip
    Unhappy

    Sounds like Despair

    Anyone remember when Despair tried to trademark the frownie and actually got it?

    http://tarr.uspto.gov/servlet/tarr?regser=serial&entry=75502288

    This is about as stupid as that, but at least Despair were taking the piss.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Sounds like Despair

      Actually, Smiley's have been a Registered TradeMark (outside the US) since 1971.

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smiley

      Just need a precedent now to undo this.

      1. Mako

        Re: Sounds like Despair

        You (and a few others above) are missing what the patent actually covers. It's not the smileys/emoticons themselves, it's the *input method* that this particular patent war is about.

  8. b166er
    Facepalm

    Broken fuckin borken patent system.

    I always type my smileys, often preferring the Eastern (from the UK) style.

    d(^.^)b

    Do the Reg's icons fall foul of this patent?

  9. pdf

    Is the patent system patently broken yet?

  10. AndrueC Silver badge
    Joke

    http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/2000-05-30/

  11. g e
    FAIL

    Hahahaha

    Bloody Americaland again...

    Surely Skype was doing this beforehand though?

    Or is it somehow different if you do it again on a mobile, then a car dashboard, then a toaster?

    Unwashed

    Stinking

    Pustulent

    Toxic

    Orifice

    1. g e

      Re: Hahahaha

      For good measure I added 'uspto' and 'patent lawyer' to urban Dictionary.

      Amazed they weren't already there to be honest.

    2. MrXavia

      Re: Hahahaha

      Remember ICQ? they had it way before Skype existed and way before most others....

      I even wrote a little messenger app in college in '96 that did this. not sure if that was before or after ICQ hit the scene.

      1. admiraljkb
        FAIL

        Re: Hahahaha

        "Remember ICQ? they had it way before Skype existed and way before most others..."

        Yes, but that wasn't on a MOBILE computing device. Crazy enough, look at everything you do on your desktop, and then just patent it for your phone. That is a lot of what has been occurring, since the patent office distinguishes a difference between mobile computers and desktop computers. Wonder if that means I can start patenting a hardware smiley button for ultrabooks?

        (the other problem, is the Patent offices (globally) are getting confused about what should be registered trademarks, versus patentable "proper" inventions, versus copyright law)

        Fail icon, cuz I could only do one.... The current patent situation deserves SOO many more. :)

  12. Dan 55 Silver badge
    Trollface

    Obviously Varia is an Apple troll

    Otherwise it would be suing both of them.

  13. Crisp

    Surely the solution is simple

    We get the lawyers from each company, and then bang their bloody heads together.

    Then the rest of us can get back to work.

    1. MrXavia

      Re: Surely the solution is simple

      Just void all software patents and 'look n feel' patents..... then use electroshock therapy on anyone who thinks they are a good idea....

This topic is closed for new posts.

Other stories you might like