Sony Hit With Patent Lawsuit Over Blu-ray

[kingofgrills]

I just read an article stating Sony was hit with a patent infringement lawsuit over Blu-ray. It's over a patent filed in 1995 that sounds really vague in the article, the patent describes the creation of “an optical disk-shaped recording medium comprising a plurality of tracks”.

Hopefully this lawsuit will be tossed out or settled quickly, so Sony and other Blu-ray manufacturers can continue without legal hoops to jump through. I understand and appreciate the intent and purpose behind patents, copyrights, etc. However, when you can patent a broad and vague general idea, which on the surface it sounds like this is, it sickens me. It's like a three year old calling dibs on everything they touch.

Anyway, here's the article:

http://www.dbtechno.com/gaming/2008/...lu-ray-in-ps3/

[Elandyll]

Ultra vague lawsuit, designed to scare em into settling down out of court unde rthe risk of seeing a court order to stop production and distribution to allow the judge to check if the claim has any merit.

It's a frivolous lawsuit, and unless the Judge is thick, he will see through that right away.

Under the claim of the company, they could pretend to royalties to anything recorded on a disc that includes tracks.
e.g CD-ROMS, CD audio, Laserdiscs, DVD Video, DVD Rom, etc.

[NutsAboutPS3]

Filed in 1995 - “an optical disk-shaped recording medium comprising a plurality of tracks”

An audio CD seems to constitute prior art for that.

[quexos]

It may seem strange to us simple folks but in the corporate world, lawsuits of all kinds for all reasons are totally common, otherwise big companies would not have armies of full time paid lawyers at their disposal

[tron3]

You think a lawsuit scares Sony? Even one which might have significant merit?

Big corporations get sued every week by some Jack-in-a-box looking for a cut of ill gotten corporate pie. Sony has their own legal team who are already pouring over the paper work for damage control.

Everyone has an ax to grind over blu-ray. So far, they all been a swing and a miss.

[Jonty]

Seems to be pretty specific to writing to disks with bad sectors. Not sure if blu-ray works this way, but it certainly doesn't look to be blu-ray specific...

Really appears to depend on the algorithms that they use to write to the disks

[eChopper]

Dont worry Sony, ill settle the case out of court...

[Sith]

hey if sonys being sued, at least it means blu's are doing good....

No one is trying to sue for money from hd dvd

[Terjyn]

Not only is a CD prior art, it's a prior art which was partially developed by Sony!

I've seen some dumb lawsuits, but unless there is more to this patent than what is presented, they are doomed.

[Branden]

an optical disk-shaped recording medium comprising a plurality of tracks?

seems there's a lot that fits under that umbrella: CD, DVD, BD, HD-DVD, laserdisc...... so why is this orinda company just going after the PS3?
maybe the CEO/president of orinda is an upset 360/HD fanboy?

[Musashi]

This just in from Panasonic and Philips: "What are we, chopped liver?"

[Jonty]

Originally Posted by Terjyn

Not only is a CD prior art, it's a prior art which was partially developed by Sony!

I've seen some dumb lawsuits, but unless there is more to this patent than what is presented, they are doomed.

The articles about patent lawsuits are usually pretty dumb too... Here is one of the claims they are suing on. A little garbled, but more than an optical shaped recording medium...

1. A method of recording optical information using an optical disk, comprising the steps of:

checking whether a target sector of the optical disk on which data is to be recorded is a bad sector, upon receiving a data recording command from main processing means;

storing information into storage means in accordance with the checked result;

reading information from mapping sectors of a block of the optical disk to which said target sector belongs and storing the read information into mapping memory means;

receiving the data to be recorded from said main processing means and checking for an error in the received data;

checking whether said target sector is the bad sector;

allotting a replacement sector located in a center of the optical disk to the target sector if it is detected that said target sector is the bad sector, and updating the mapping sector information in said mapping memory means;

seeking said target sector if it is checked that said target sector is normal and setting the recording command in sector read/write control means so that the data can be recorded on said target sector; and

modulating the data and recording the modulated data on said target sector.

[kjack]

Originally Posted by tron3

Everyone has an ax to grind over blu-ray.

It's more like everyone has their hand out, wanting "their fair share". That's why it's important to have a large patent portfolio, so you have a war chest to counter with if need be.

[CAB]

I've been meaning to file that suit against the car companies for my patent I filed last year for anything round that's used to roll. Think I have a case?

[doctorsteve]

Originally Posted by CAB

I've been meaning to file that suit against the car companies for my patent I filed last year for anything round that's used to roll. Think I have a case?

Not as good as my mine. I filed a patent to involve things which may be, in part, containing dough.

Look out Dunkin' Donuts, The Federal Reserve, and Homer Simpson.

[GTPro]

mark my words - this is the first and last time you will hear about this too. Its just too stupid for any real legal big wigs to take seriously - it will be thrown out quicker than my trash this week

[dialog_gvf]

I happen to hold the patent for the transmission of messaging through an online forum.

You'll all be hearing from my lawyer!

[quexos]

Originally Posted by dialog_gvf

I happen to hold the patent for the transmission of messaging through an online forum.

You'll all be hearing from my lawyer!

I'm in international territory, hope your patent does not apply here

[Blu-Jedi]

Originally Posted by dialog_gvf

I happen to hold the patent for the transmission of messaging through an online forum.

You'll all be hearing from my lawyer!

PRICELESS

[wallendo]

I read the brief summary of the patent, and it seems to describe a way of recording information on an optical disk. I didn't know my PS3 could record on a optical disk.

This case sounds about as legitimate as the Pangea "we patent online shopping" patent.