toggle

AAPL Stock: 565.32 ( -5.24 )

MacNN News

BTG sues Apple, Microsoft over software update

updated 04:00 pm EDT, Tue July 20, 2004

BTG sues Apple, MS

London intellectual property licensing company and Microsoft, alleging infringement of software technology patents, according to Reuters. BTG, along with Teleshuttle Corp. and Teleshuttle Technologies LLC, has filed suit in the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of California against Apple and Microsoft, alleging "infringement on Teleshuttle patents covering Web-enabled software update technologies, which are important in helping protect computer users from viruses and other Internet attacks. Both Apple and Microsoft incorporate automatic software update technology into Microsoft's Windows and Apple's OS X operating systems." Another lawsuit against Microsoft alleges infringements by Microsoft's active desktop and offline browsing technologies.

by MacNN Staff

(15)

TAGS :

industry

Share the Article

Facebook Twitter Delious Slash Dot Digg

toggle

Comments

LouZer
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Nov 2000

0

07/20, 04:07pm | report spam | close Reply |
Woohoo!

Another frivilous patent lawsuit! Notice how they add the virus thing in there. The patent probably is specific to viruses, so they say the updates can protect against viruses, so there, its a violation.

absmiths
Mac Elite

Joined: Sep 2000

0

07/20, 04:10pm | report spam | close Reply |
What a crock

So many systems use internet updating: Virus Scanners, OSes, shareware, freeware, open source. I think it is too late for a suit - too late for SCO; too late for that HTML patent (I don't remember who - hypertext people); too late for BTG.

Brownjm81
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2004

0

07/20, 04:23pm | report spam | close Reply |
bull

whats next Al gore sues everybody because HE invented the internet. PLEASE!

triple704
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: May 2004

0

07/20, 04:24pm | report spam | close Reply |
please.

Come on this is a bunch of junk. Can no one do anything useful anymore without someone else trying to claim they thought of it first!

pdot
Senior User

Joined: Aug 2000

0

07/20, 04:32pm | report spam | close Reply |
re: bull

As the inventor, he should take moe responsibility. We should sue Gore because he's allowing viruses to go through his network.

dylanw
Junior Member

Joined: Mar 2001

0

07/20, 06:06pm | report spam | close Reply |
Al Gore

Jeez. Can we let this go, once and for all?

http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.htm

sumpter
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2004

0

07/20, 06:18pm | report spam | close Reply |
web != internet

"Web-enabled software update technologies" - The web is NOT the internet. The web is only a piece of the internet - an application protocol over TCP/IP.

If this synopsis is written correctly, this lawsuit only applies if Apple's Software Update is using the HTTP protocol. I don't have my mac handy, but can anyone tcpdump a software update session to see if this is indeed the case? If Software Update is HTTP based, I imagine it would be somewhat trivial to use a custom protocol over SSL if they wanted to...

Microsoft's windowsupdate.microsoft.com, however, is indeed a web udate. A user hits a web page that brings up a mechanism to install updates. Totally different animal.

Roehlstation
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2001

0

07/20, 07:24pm | report spam | close Reply |
re: web/internet

Well...that isn't neccessarily true. The world wide web and the internet are terms used synonomously.

jedi1yoda1
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Dec 2001

0

07/20, 07:29pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: Al Gore

Create is a synonym of invent.

"I took the initiative in creating the Internet."

"I took the initiative in inventing the Internet."

Jeez. Have a little fun with it.

mtroute
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: May 2002

0

07/20, 07:59pm | report spam | close Reply |
I have a case!!!

I have a patent for the process of gas exchange, that means that everyone who breaths owes me a license fee! Pay up you b*******!

Ganesha
Senior User

Joined: Jul 2002

0

07/20, 08:08pm | report spam | close Reply |
Software Update

Software Update does indeed use http.

LouZer
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Nov 2000

0

07/20, 10:10pm | report spam | close Reply |
web not http

The internet is not synomous with 'the web'. People might use those interchangably, but the 'web' runs on the internet, as does 'the FTP', and the 'P2P', and all other stuff.

Http is a protocol, not the web. The 'web' generally uses this protocol, but also https (a separate protocol), but its not a requirement (you could 'ftp' your web pages into your browser, or use afp: or the like).

If the patent covers web updates, then it only applies to updates delivered through a web page (and, again, may only apply to updates provided based off of your current configuration).

Of course, this could be all wrong, and the patent covers any update delivered over the internet (not just the web).

technohedz
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2000

0

07/20, 10:34pm | report spam | close Reply |
Apple Prior Art

Apple should actually sue them. The date of the patent which apple is being sued under (see eweek) is April 20, 2000, yet Mac OS 9 utilized the system described prior to this patent application. (1999 or so). If the technology is in use prior to the application and was not reverse enginered from the patent applicants product, then it's a frivolous lawsuit. Which it is, however the 3 windows ones may actually work.

MacChef
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Dec 2001

0

07/20, 11:56pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: Re:Al Gore

Create IS NOT synonymous with invent. Look it up!

Create means to produce. It can OPTIONALLY include the connotation of being originally produced (from imagination, ingenuity or inventiveness).

Invent means to produce or create WITH the connotation of it being more original from imagination ro ingenuity. I.E. Invent could be looked at as a more particular version of create, but create is a general or generic term that does not have to be original, imaginiative, etc. After all, I can CREATE a copy of a painting, but I can't INVENT a copy of a painting.

I like having fun with words too, but 'creative license' is not a license to kill the english language (or someone's reputation).

Roehlstation
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2001

0

07/21, 08:35am | report spam | close Reply |
Re: Web not http

Yes technically the web is not the same, however it is synonomous as far as news services are concerned. I think if you read the case the person filing is suing over using a network connection to upgrade software automatically. The news item refers to this as the Web.

There are a ton of protocols that run on the web, Telnet, http, https, VNC, VPN, SSL, all of these can reach the same location on the internet. SO that line is blurred between the Internet and the World Wide Web.

Show More Comments

Login Here

toggle

Network Headlines

05/24	Apple submits surprise optical stylus...
05/24	Yahoo releases Axis 'visual search'...
05/24	Apple airs two new Siri commercials...
05/23	Google launches redesigned Search app...
05/23	IBM blocking iPhone's Siri on internal...

Show All

05/24	Apple submits surprise optical stylus...
05/24	Yahoo releases Axis 'visual search'...
05/24	Google�s 7-inch tablet ships next month...
05/24	Apple airs two new Siri commercials...
05/23	Google launches redesigned Search app...

Show All

05/23	Google launches redesigned Search app...
05/22	Leaked next-gen iPod touch part hints...
05/22	Hulu Plus updates with iPad Retina...
05/22	TiVo Stream to push TV to iPhones,...
05/22	Hands on: TouchType case for iPad,...

Show All

03/02	Save $330 on refurb. 15.4-inch, 2.4GHz...
03/01	Pre-owned 8GB iPod touch 2G, drops...
02/29	$150 off Nikon Coolpix S80 Compact...
02/28	Plantronics BackBeat 903 Bluetooth...
02/27	Refurb. Seagate 1.5TB GoFlex Portable...

Show All

toggle

BTG sues Apple, Microsoft over software update

updated 04:00 pm EDT, Tue July 20, 2004

BTG sues Apple, MS

Woohoo!

What a crock

bull

please.

re: bull

Al Gore

web != internet

re: web/internet

Re: Al Gore

I have a case!!!

Software Update

web not http

Apple Prior Art

Re: Re:Al Gore

Re: Web not http

Login Here

Register for our weekly email newsletter:

Connect tools:

Subscribe

to our RSS

Follow us

on Twitter

10 Most Read

10 Most Discussed

MacNN Marketplace

BTG sues Apple, Microsoft over software update

updated 04:00 pm EDT, Tue July 20, 2004

BTG sues Apple, MS

Related Articles

Recent Articles

Woohoo!

What a crock

bull

please.

re: bull

Al Gore

web != internet

re: web/internet

Re: Al Gore

I have a case!!!

Software Update

web not http

Apple Prior Art

Re: Re:Al Gore

Re: Web not http

Login Here

Register for our weekly email newsletter:

Connect tools:

Subscribe

to our RSS

Follow us

on Twitter

10 Most Read

10 Most Discussed

MacNN Marketplace