Google Acquires Nine Facet Technology Patents

The story is sourced to SEO By the Sea which in turn sites the US Patent Office database:

From the USPTO assignments database, it appears that Google has acquired Facet Technologies interest in the assigment of a number of their patents, which I’ve listed below. The execution data on the assignments is listed as June 21, 2011, and the assignments were recorded with the patent office on August 8, 2010. The USTPO database doesn’t provide any details behind the transaction such as costs or other considerations involved or licensing agreements that Facet Tech might have in place with other companies, or if Google acquired the company, its maps databases or just some of its intellectual property.

Facet was one of the companies way back that collected data for Google. The company has licensed its patents to TomTom. But now it seems Google will own the IP for use in data capture, mapping and suggests the article self driving car development.

There are nine patents and Bill Slawski does a good job arranging and discussing them; check the patents and his analysis out. I have nothing to add!

- SEO By the Sea

Update: German Court Finds Garmin Infringes on Pioneer Patent

Garmin's GPS devices do not violate the Pioneer patent, said the U.S. International Trade Commission on Friday. That affirms an administrative law judges take from Dec 2010.

Pioneer had hoped to bar import of devices that did infringe. No go on that.

- Reuters

-- original post 12/27/10 ---

Garmin Ltd. said in a statement that a German court found it infringed on two patents owned by Japan’s Pioneer Corp. Garmin has updated the software to get around the issue. Still the company has filed a case in Germany to invalidate the patent.

- Bloomberg

- press release

REAL Inc. Mapping Patent Judgement Overturned on Appeal

Or, that's my best understanding of the document dated Mar 22, 2011, posted at Leagle which reads in part:

Appellant Real Estate Alliance Ltd. (REAL) appeals the district court's judgment that Move, Inc. et al. (Move) do not infringe claim 1 of REAL's U.S. Patent No. 5,032,989 (the '989 patent). We conclude that the district court erred in its claim construction, and vacate and remand for further proceedings.

So, I fear this is back on. I wrote about the decision on the long running case last year. Here's a link to the original story, about the original suits, from 2005.

Three LBS Patents for TCS

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued TCS three LBS patents to TeleCommunication Systems, Inc . The three U.S. patents are "Wireless Network Tour Guide" (number 7,853,272), "Area Watcher for Wireless Network" (number 7,856,236), and "Method and System for Enabling an Off Board Navigation Solution" (number 7,856,315).

The PR describes each one:

"Wireless Network Tour Guide" describes a method for providing tour-guide information to wireless devices, such as smart phones, for use in self-guided tour scenarios. 

"Area Watcher for Wireless Network" describes a system in which dynamic and current information is provided to authorized third parties about a wireless device's entry into or exit from custom-defined geographical areas. 

"Method and System for Enabling an Off Board Navigation Solution" describes a method for providing real-time, off-board, voice-enabled routing directions using a mobile communication device. 

- press release

“Mobile to Mobile Video Sharing with Location” Patent

Reality Mobile®, a Virginia-based technology company delivering enterprise-class real-time mobile video collaboration solutions, today announced that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued to Reality Mobile its second patent, U.S. Patent No. 7,887,502. The patent relates to simultaneous mobile-to-mobile visualization of multiple streaming videos and other data feeds along with their originating geographical location. This award builds on the company’s software portfolio, which addresses the mobile video and data visualization collaboration needs of large enterprises, government agencies and technology OEMs. It has significant implications for mobile consumer applications as well.

Abstract:

Methods and systems for remote data collection and distribution include components and operations for receiving, at a server, data transmitted by a first client device via a communication network. The method may also include selecting, by one or more client devices associated with the communication network, a second device to receive the data. The method may further include establishing a connection between the server and the selected second device via the communication network. The method may also include automatically transmitting the received data to the second device using the connection via the communication network. The method may further include causing, by the one or more client devices, the second device to execute a predefined operation.

- press release