No Hang Ups for Apple

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I caught up on tech news as I sipped my morning coffee. It’s been seven years since I left the IT workforce and this is one of the ways that I try to keep current. It’s not always an effective technique. The speed of change in technology frequently leaves my head spinning and I’ve considered having a scarlet “D” (that’s for dinosaur) placed on my forehead. 

This morning, however, I had no trouble understanding the news that Apple had prevailed over Google in an iPhone-related dispute. The case, filed by Motorola Mobility in 2010 and inherited by Google with its purchase of that company last year, revolved around touch screen capabilities that sense the location of the user’s head and prevent head movement from causing an inadvertent hang up. 

It brought back memories of my first cell phone. Although it didn’t have a touch screen, it had the usual buttons, including the one that ended a call. Although I am not known for physical coordination, I could unerringly hit that disconnect button in the middle of important calls. 

It wasn’t hard to imagine how that problem could have been exacerbated with a touch screen. Yesterday, Apple prevailed, when the International Trade Commission stood behind a December ruling that found Motorola’s patent to be invalid.

Patent attorneys won’t have time to catch their breath, as Microsoft is now being sued over Skype patents by VirnetX. Apple has also tangled with VirnetX over patents related to VPN communication links. Unlike yesterday’s win, they are still licking their wounds over the $368 million dollar judgment. Guess you can’t win them all.

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