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http://www.insanely-great.com/news.php?id=1590
Apple sues Unova
By ron carlson, Insanely Great Mac
January 26th 2003
In what is being called a 'tactical move,' the mothership has filled suit over a
number of scanner technologies
Bloomberg reports that Apple has filed suit against Unova, a hand-held scanner maker
(among other things), of using computer-related technology protected by six patents
without permission.
"It appears to be a tactical response by Apple, filed in response to our lawsuit
against them in 2002 for infringement of Unova's smart battery patents," Unova
spokesman David Brooks said. Unova sued Apple, Fujitsu, Gateway and other computer
makers in federal court in Los Angeles over the battery technology.
Unova's Intermec unit is using the patented technology in software and scanners that
are hand-held or mounted on vehicles and used by delivery people or warehouse workers,
Apple claims. The suit seeks to bar Unova and Intermec from selling machines and
software that rely on the mothership's "innovations," including those related to data
transmission and circuit board voltage.
Apple's suit is the latest chapter in a fight over technology between the two
companies. Unova sued Cupertino last May claiming infringement of a patent that covers
monitor use and recharging of portable computer batteries. Unova has collected at
least $150 million in legal settlements from laptop makers for its "smart battery"
patent.
Editor's note: To this pundit, the notion, legal definition and application of
intellectual property is sadly in need of revisiting. From the outrageous DMCA-based
lawsuits to companies attempting to enforce so-called "copyrights" that encompass
universal concepts such as "hyperlinks," a perverse amount of money, both by lawyers
and companies that do nothing but search for loopholes in others' patents, is being
made without any commensurate increase in societal wealth.
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