No, people aren't throwing their controllers and breaking things this time. No, Nintendo and Sony are now being sued over the technology used in their wireless controllers. From GameSpot:
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The latest dispute comes from the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, where Copper Innovations Group late last month filed suit against Nintendo and Sony for a patent it holds on a "Hand Held Computer Input Apparatus and Method."
The patent--which was filed in January of 1996--covers a method for connecting devices to a system and sorting their inputs by means of hardware identification numbers tied to each transmission. According to the suit, Nintendo and Sony are violating the Copper Innovations Group's patent by making and selling their systems and controllers. The Wii Remote, Wii Nunchuk, Sixaxis controller, and Blu-ray Remote Control are all named in the suit as infringing products.
I think it may have something to do with the fact that both use Bluetooth. That's the only real parallel that I can draw between the Wii and PS3 that the 360 doesn't fall under.
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I hate these lawsuits that are becoming more and more common. There are companies that exist solely to hold IP, so that they can sue companies that use them.
Its all screwed, this whole patent/copyright issue is getting out of hand. Bloodsuckers.
Maybe these guys do have a valid claim, I'm just saying this kind of thing seems more and more prevalent, and I dont think its because companies are ripping off other peoples IP more than ever before. its just that people are more anal about it, and want to catch people out to sue them for money, not actually use said IP themselves.
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The last time someone went around being tolerant of everyone around him, we nailed him to a fucking cross for being a preachy asshole.
Hu? This is standard BlueTooth??? How can they sue Sony for this?
Edit: Well maybe not. This is indeed standard BlueTooth but as I recall from my previous BlueTooth conference, not all handshaking protocols are part of the Nokia standard so maybe these guys own the handshaking protocol that Sony and Nintendo have used. I seem to remember that companies usually "give" new protocols for free to the BlueTooth group so other companies can use them. Maybe Sony/Nintendo never asked? In that case they will probably get owned. TBH I hate BlueTooth as tech for devs... so maybe some BlueTooth expert can help us out here in this case?
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Plus, why are they not suing MS?
MS has non standard wireless. I guess they got everything covered by their own IP.
I read somewhere that all this is, is the numbers that light up on the controllers telling you which controller is which player.
If that were the case, then Microsoft would be included (I'd think) as they have the little green ring on the controllers to perform the same function.
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"Hand Held Computer Input Apparatus and Method." is what is what the patent is about. I highly doubt someone making "likeness" to another product is illegal. (Vii anyone?) But if Nintendo and Sony stole their technology, which I doubt, they could see a substantial settlement.
It's impossible to say if they have a case or not without seeing the patent, filings, and comparing these to Bluetooth technology. The reason Microsoft may not be named is that Microsoft's controllers may not "cover a method for connecting devices to a system and sorting their inputs by means of hardware identification numbers tied to each transmission". In other words, the Xbox 360 knows that a controller is connected or several are connected, but it does so by counting the incoming signals rather than tracking the input device's hardware identification numbers.
It could also be, that unlike Sony and Nintendo, MS actually did a proper patent search on the technology, and licensed it. Or conversely, they paid for a license when contacted by the company.
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How hard is it to include a patent number in your story about a damn patent?
I mean, a google.com/patents link - sure that might be challenging. But they could at least give us the damn number! (5640152)
EDIT: a brief stumbling through the claims shows no clear reason why they wouldn't sue MS as well. Perhaps MS bought a license, or they don't want to risk putting all their eggs into one basket. (Same logic behind why prosecutors won't charge a serial killer for all his murders in the same trial)
I also see no reason why this patent would hold up in court. It's absurdly broad.
This is indeed standard BlueTooth but as I recall from my previous BlueTooth conference, not all handshaking protocols are part of the Nokia standard so maybe these guys own the handshaking protocol that Sony and Nintendo have used.
Since the Sixaxis is Bluetooth, can you use it as a PC gamepad?
Doing a quick Google search, it can be used when plugged in via USB, but I didn't see anything about it working with Bluetooth. There's probably some way to get it done, though.
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