It seems that Facebook has some problems with being sued now. Apparently, the "Like" button which we all know so well had been patented some five years before there was even a mention of a Facebook - in 1998. There was a site called Surfbook which was the first to use this button and according to Rembrandt Social Media which acts for the widow of the "inventor" of this button, Facebook is now using it for free and without any consent from their side.
Sued you say. Hmm. Isn't that typical. Judging from the past experience, Zuckerberg is probably just going to pay up and not bother any more.
ReplyDeleteThat's highly possible. But the thing is that there are more sites which operate with similar system, including Google+. I wonder if they will be sued in the future, too?
ReplyDeleteVery interesting dispute. It reminds me that a year or so ago, Apple sued Samsung over the "design patent" on the iPhone. Apple said Samsung's phones were stealing various unique design features from the iPhone. For now, at least, Apple is winning:
ReplyDeletehttp://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2013/01/22/apple-samsung-patent-lawsuit/
Anyway, one of Samsung's replies is that basic design features of the iPhone are not "unique" and couldn't be patented, because people have been imagining devices like this for a long time. The papers that Samsung filed with the court cited examples from film and TV science fiction of the 1960s and 1970s, even linking to a YouTube clip to prove the point:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-20096061-248/samsung-cites-kubrick-film-in-apple-patent-spat/
It's also ironic, for someone like me old enough to remember the early wars between Apple and Microsoft, that Apple -- which used to advertise itself as the company promoting freedom and individuality against a big, bureaucratic, totalitarian Microsoft -- is now using many of the same aggressive tactics to shut down competitors that Microsoft previously made famous.
How can you claim ownership over "Like" button? I find it quite ridiculous. I mean, it's a natural thing that people like/dislike something. It's not like it was a cure for cancer or something really innovative and new. Besides, there are so many other sites that use this button...How can you find out who was the first? It reminds me of another case when various authors wanted to sue J.K. Rowling for using wizards in her books.
ReplyDelete