Tag: Saved for Later

Posted on

Apple patent victory puts Samsung devices in jeopardy

Apple has won another small victory in its never-ending patent row with Samsung. The war that nobody asked for (and like most wars will have no winners, only losers) rages on with another appeals court decision. This one went in favor of Apple (as all but a few have), ruling that the company could force Samsung to stop using particular features on its cellphones and tablets. The ruling, while relatively narrow in scope, could still have significant consequences for Samsung and other device manufacturers.

The opinion from the court stated that "the right to exclude competitors from using one’s property rights is important." What makes this particularly notable is that in this case we’re talking about specific, individual features and technologies in a complex device. If the ruling stands that means that future devices from any company could be delayed or even removed from the market temporarily over seemingly minor features. For example, the ability to slide to unlock your phone.

Apple won an initial trial saying that Samsung had violated its patents on slide-to-unlock, autocorrect and quicklinks. But the judge at the time declined to force Samsung to change its designs and instead only awarded Cupertino monetary damages. That wasn’t enough for Apple which has continued to chase a full victory in the court system.

Of course, this is hardly the end of the fight. Samsung is appealing the decision, as well as the original decision finding that it had violated Apple’s patents. And right now the case is being sent back to a lower court to reconsider an injunction. However, the court systems appear to be tiring of these constant skirmishes as much as the public.

While in general the patent skirmishes between these two companies and its proxies have have died down, they haven’t ended completely. We can all hope that one day there will be an Apple / Samsung peace accord, but for now it seems the best case scenario is that the collateral damage doesn’t extend to consumer choice.

Filed under:
, ,

Comments

Source:
Bloomberg

Tags: apple, breaking news, court, lawsuit, patent, PatentInfringement, samsung

from Engadget http://ift.tt/1JdCylH
via IFTTT

Posted on

Could Netflix Be The Best Untapped Dating Network Online?

Netfling dating app Netfling concept app video screenshot

‘Netfling’ is a concept for a dating app based on Netflix ratings

A proposed app hopes to skip the pleasantries and get to the most important online dating question: what shows do you like to stream?

The app, called "Netfling," is so far just a concept proposed by "digitally born and raised" ad agency SuperHeroes Amsterdam, albeit one whose timing couldn’t be more perfect: the term “Netflix and chill” has rapidly become the preferred euphemism for proposing a "hook up" by young adults. (Netflix, for its part, counts streaming hours even if you’re not paying attention to the screen).

The honest truth is that streaming services and bingewatching movies and TV unites people intimately, whether they end up paying attention to what’s on or not. Netflix had more than 65 million users as of last count, 42 million in the US alone. For comparison, the much-ballyhooed dating app Tinder has an estimated 50 million users worldwide (the company hasn’t released official figures).

Combining the audiences certainly presents advantages for people looking for someone with shared interests — or at least mutual interest in Netflix and dating. And for users, Netflix is a significant factor in determining shared interests, given that the average Netflix subscriber uses the service for about two hours a day.

Netfling and its probable competitor Binger, are hoping to enter the market but await the return of an open Netflix application programming interface (API) — the system used by third-party software developers to build apps based on a company’s data — which Netflix discontinued in 2014. Would-be Netflix-based dating apps will need that in order to do with Netflix what Tinder does with Facebook. Without an open API, it’s unlikely we’ll actually see either app enter the market anytime soon.

Here’s hoping it does, even at the cost of star-crossed lovers with differing opinions on The Walking Dead.

from Popular Science http://ift.tt/1FaJSU1
via IFTTT