Re: Active Buddy patent application on "Bots" (rewritten to reduce size)

On 1/23/03 10:52, "Bob Wyman" <[email protected]> wrote:

> Peter Saint-Andre wrote:
>> The fact that there are over 700 pending patent applications
>> containing the phrase instant messaging is pretty scary.
>   Yes, very scary. The IM space is being locked up by patents very
> quickly but it isn't the only space with a similar problem. For
> instance, there are currently 372 patent applications that contain the
> phrase "Session Initiation Protocol" (many of these are not IM related).
> The SIP space is being pinned down in a terrible way...
> 
>> it would take me a year to work through the backlog.
>   The most important thing to do here is to keep up to date on new
> patents and new applications. It is *very* important to keep up to date
> on new applications since there is a tiny, two-month window during which
> third-parties are able to submit prior art to the PTO that will be
> considered in the patent granting process. This is a relatively new

At this rate I don't think we can manage without help and tools. Sounds like
another JSF web project... :) Isn't there some other website where they post
patents and ask people for prior art that would invalidate them?

I think we might have better luck with getting other members to share the
load if people could volunteer an hour or two in a clear cut task. Reading
through a patent to see if it warrants attention seems to nicely fall into
that category if we could make it easy to 'take ownership' of a particular
patent review.

-iain