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zdnet reports that Microsoft has filed for a patent on smileys
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,3...9210396,00.htm

Another conspicuous abuse of the patent system, there's nothing innovative
or novel here, and lots of prior art.

The world is starting to look like a monopoly board, where the big
corporations (Microsoft, Disney, et al) own all the places, build hotels
and charge everyone every time they pass. The rich get richer, the poor
get poorer, and any new innovation or new competitors are shut out.


Peter

Peter wrote:
> zdnet reports that Microsoft has filed for a patent on smileys
> http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,3...9210396,00.htm
>
> Another conspicuous abuse of the patent system, there's nothing innovative
> or novel here, and lots of prior art.
>
> The world is starting to look like a monopoly board, where the big
> corporations (Microsoft, Disney, et al) own all the places, build hotels
> and charge everyone every time they pass. The rich get richer, the poor
> get poorer, and any new innovation or new competitors are shut out.
>
>
> Peter
>

Yep.

Thats why the EU kicked out the US patent law, plain stupid. Somehow
some people sem to think a similar law will make them lots of money and
EU companies will benefit, I think that is naive in the extream, though
more likely a greedy few who thought they could make a lot of money.

regards

Thing

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 08:54:40 +1200, Peter <>
wrote:

>
>zdnet reports that Microsoft has filed for a patent on smileys
>http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,3...9210396,00.htm
>
>Another conspicuous abuse of the patent system, there's nothing innovative
>or novel here, and lots of prior art.
>
>The world is starting to look like a monopoly board, where the big
>corporations (Microsoft, Disney, et al) own all the places, build hotels
>and charge everyone every time they pass. The rich get richer, the poor
>get poorer, and any new innovation or new competitors are shut out.

Patents only have a limited life, like copyrights.

The world does not look like what you claim at all.

In article <>,
Rob J <> wrote:

>On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 08:54:40 +1200, Peter <>
>wrote:
>
>>
>>zdnet reports that Microsoft has filed for a patent on smileys
>>http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,3...9210396,00.htm
>>
>>Another conspicuous abuse of the patent system, there's nothing innovative
>>or novel here, and lots of prior art.
>>
>>The world is starting to look like a monopoly board, where the big
>>corporations (Microsoft, Disney, et al) own all the places, build hotels
>>and charge everyone every time they pass. The rich get richer, the poor
>>get poorer, and any new innovation or new competitors are shut out.
>
>Patents only have a limited life, like copyrights.

Yeah, that patent will only be valid for the next 17 years at most. In
Internet time, that's hardly any time at all. Then we can all go back to
using smileys for free.

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 13:54:14 +1200, someone purporting to be Rob J didst
scrawl:

> On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 08:54:40 +1200, Peter <>
> wrote:
>
*SNIP*
>>The world is starting to look like a monopoly board, where the big
>>corporations (Microsoft, Disney, et al) own all the places, build hotels
>>and charge everyone every time they pass. The rich get richer, the poor
>>get poorer, and any new innovation or new competitors are shut out.
>
> Patents only have a limited life, like copyrights.
>
Patents have a 17 year life, which for the IT industry is roughly
equivalent to Watt having patented electrickery generation and that patent
still being in force.
Copyrights, in the US at least, are now death plus 70 years for works by
individuals. Assuming that all generations live the present average male
lifespan of 77 years, and reproduce at age 30, a work that I create
tomorrow (aged 25) wouldn't become public domain under US IP law until my
GRANDCHILDREN are dead and my great grandchildren have children.
That's not a limited life, that's a licence to print money.

> The world does not look like what you claim at all.
No, you just don't understand what the world looks like. US IP law, which
is being forced upon the rest of the world as fast as they are able, is a
total abortion that has no goal of furthering the creative arts.

--
Matthew Poole
"Don't use force. Get a bigger hammer."

Rob J wrote:
> Patents only have a limited life, like copyrights.

You should read more about copyrights. The trend is for them to get longer
and longer.
In USA a couple of years back, there was a court case about whether congress
could just keep extending the term of copyright, like they have been doing.
The supreme court found that they could, so in effect there is no limit on
copyright.

This is way different from what was intended when copyright was first
introduced centuries ago. Try reading stuff by Jefferson or Macaulay, or
check out Lessig ...
http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/poli...15/lessig.html

This perpetual extension of copyright isn't to benefit artists or consumers,
it is to benefit the big corporates who own the copyrights (which is the
point made in the earlier post).


Peter

"Peter" <> wrote

>
> zdnet reports that Microsoft has filed for a patent on smileys
> http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,3...9210396,00.htm

I think I will patent word "the" if M$ win this one.

Hey - its got to be worth a try, and think of gagillions of dollars I will
make!!

Screw rest of you...

(I deliberately left word out above (and here) to demonstrate how much money
I can make from this!!)

Peter wrote:
> zdnet reports that Microsoft has filed for a patent on smileys
> http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,3...9210396,00.htm
>
> Another conspicuous abuse of the patent system, there's nothing innovative
> or novel here, and lots of prior art.
>
> The world is starting to look like a monopoly board, where the big
> corporations (Microsoft, Disney, et al) own all the places, build hotels
> and charge everyone every time they pass. The rich get richer, the poor
> get poorer, and any new innovation or new competitors are shut out.
>
>
> Peter
>


A good analogy. What is defeating them at present though is the shear
scale of the Internet which is effectively unlimited, unlike a monopoly
board. Hence I see their moves (initially anyway) as trying to hogtie
the US market, if they can put a ring fence around the USA they have a
managable monopoly board. The big Q is IF.

The critical thing will come down to choice, as long as Governments are
not stupid enough to try and control the Internet and sell it to these
"providers of content" aka the G3 networks, choice should remain.

Personally I do not think they are winning (at least outside of the
USA)....I think scale is defeating them, its taking them too long to try
and control something that is too large and too dynamic.

regards

Thing

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 14:54:37 +1200, "BTMO" <> wrote:

>
>"Peter" <> wrote
>
>>
>> zdnet reports that Microsoft has filed for a patent on smileys
>> http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,3...9210396,00.htm
>
>I think I will patent word "the" if M$ win this one.
>
>Hey - its got to be worth a try, and think of gagillions of dollars I will
>make!!
>
>Screw rest of you...

You should patent "M$", not "the". Think of all the gazillions of dollars you
could make off the Open Source community.



and another few while they're still free

On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 14:34:41 +1200, Matthew Poole <>
wrote:

>On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 13:54:14 +1200, someone purporting to be Rob J didst
>scrawl:
>
>> On Sat, 23 Jul 2005 08:54:40 +1200, Peter <>
>> wrote:
>>
>*SNIP*
>>>The world is starting to look like a monopoly board, where the big
>>>corporations (Microsoft, Disney, et al) own all the places, build hotels
>>>and charge everyone every time they pass. The rich get richer, the poor
>>>get poorer, and any new innovation or new competitors are shut out.
>>
>> Patents only have a limited life, like copyrights.
>>
>Patents have a 17 year life, which for the IT industry is roughly
>equivalent to Watt having patented electrickery generation and that patent
>still being in force.
>Copyrights, in the US at least, are now death plus 70 years for works by
>individuals. Assuming that all generations live the present average male
>lifespan of 77 years, and reproduce at age 30, a work that I create
>tomorrow (aged 25) wouldn't become public domain under US IP law until my
>GRANDCHILDREN are dead and my great grandchildren have children.
>That's not a limited life, that's a licence to print money.

Another troll who doesn't believe in people's right to protect their
IP.

Who really cares whether Mickey Mouse is still copyrighted? I couldn't
give a toss.

>
>> The world does not look like what you claim at all.
>No, you just don't understand what the world looks like. US IP law, which
>is being forced upon the rest of the world as fast as they are able, is a
>total abortion that has no goal of furthering the creative arts.

What crap!