Hardly a month goes by without Facebook finding itself named in a patent-infringement lawsuit, and October’s plaintiff is Bascom Research, which describes itself as a “software-development company focused on applying computational and data structures to complex data sets in the medical field.”
We're kicking off our upcoming Social Media Marketing Boot Camp with a special keynote presentation by Ella Chick (left), the digital producer at Anderson Cooper 360°. She'll discuss how the network uses social media for breaking news and leverages social media to draw attention to organizations and causes. Learn more about our program and register here. Facebook was hit with another patent-infringement suit, this time from Eolas Technologies, which licensed four interactive technology patents from the Regents of the University of California, and the university.
When Facebook faced a patent-infringement lawsuit by Yahoo, countersuing turned out to be an effective strategy, leading to a settlement between the two companies. The social network is apparently hoping for a similar outcome in a patent suit filed against it by Mitel Networks in March.
Yahoo and Facebook are trying to put an end to a legal saga in which the web portal sued the social network for patent infringement. Yahoo claimed in March that Facebook essentially stole its social network model, which includes creating profiles and interacting with other users and businesses. Both sides were in court again Tuesday, as Yahoo asked for a two-week extension to file replies in the lawsuit.
Executives from Yahoo and Facebook have been in negotiations to end their patent litigation battle, started by a suit Yahoo filed against Facebook in March, with the two companies exploring cross-licensing of patents and deeper integration between the search engine and the social network, according to reports.
Yahoo’s decision to file a patent-infringement lawsuit against Facebook is not a popular one among the Internet and technology sectors.
Defendants always vow to defend themselves vigorously against the allegations at hand, but Facebook followed through on that promise, filing a counterclaim to Yahoo’s patent-infringement lawsuit and turning the tables by accusing Yahoo of patent violations.
A patent-infringement lawsuit ended up leading to an acquisition, as relationship-management-software developer WhoGlue announced that it was acquired by Facebook.
