Chrome Alleged to Be Tarnished
October 29, 2009
A happy quack to the reader who sent me a link to the Network World story “Google Hit with Patent Suit Related to Chrome.” Patent litigation is an expensive activity. For me the most significant passage in the article was:
Filed in the U.D. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, the suit also charges Google with publishing and distributing the source code for Red Bend’s technology. That charge may stem from the fact that Chrome and the Courgette update system are open source. Red Bend claims that Google has known about the patent, which Red Bend filed for in 1998 and was granted in 2003, since Sept. 7 this year. As a result, Red Bend is asking for triple damages and attorney’s fees.
I am no attorney, but I recall reading a number of Google patent documents that explain various bits and pieces of the Chrome service. I also recall reading about Google compression methods. I sure don’t know if the Red Bend allegation is going to stand up in court. Google has cash, so any outfit with patents can examine Google and hope for a big pay day.
The other aspect of this dust up is the fact that some of the code is open source. I will be interested to see how this factor emerges from the lofty and admirable legal processes ahead. Yikes! Open source. Patents. Google. Quite a combination of ingredients.
Stephen Arnold, October 29, 2009
Tess licked me after I wrote this. Tell the USDA!
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