Congressmen Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) have introduced the Saving High-tech Innovators from Egregious Legal Disputes (SHIELD) Act, an act that attempts to fight back against patent trolls. The bill would force plaintiffs to pay for the defendant’s attorney fees and other legal costs if their patent lawsuit fails in court.  Plaintiffs would be exempt if they invented the patent themselves or could show that they had made a substantial investment in trying to bring the patent to market.  The SHIELD Act has the support of various organizations, who view patent trolls as a threat to innovation, a threat that adds no economic value to the country.  On the other hand, some warn that any legislation on patent trolls would be a “gift to infringers”

Nintendo Sued for Patent Infringement Over 3DS

The gaming giant Nintendo is being sued for patent infringement for its 3DS handheld gaming system.  Sejiro Tomita, a former SONY employee, claims that Nintendo used technology that he developed and patented relating to the ability to provide 3-D images without the use of glasses.  Opening arguments were heard on Monday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, with Tomita’s legal team arguing that Nintendo used Tomita’s technology to develop the 3DS.  Tomita claims that he showed his technology in a 2003 meeting with seven Nintento officials, four of which went on to be key developers for the 3DS.  Nintendo claims that the 3DS doesn’t use key aspects of Tomita’s patent.  It claims that the meeting with Tomita was one of hundreds, including one with Sharp Corp., the manufacturer of the 3DS’s screen.  Tomita is seeking $9.80 for every 3DS sold, which, given the nearly 29 million units already sold, amounts to approximately $280 million in damages.  This is not the first time that Nintendo has faced this kind of lawsuit.  Back in 2006, similar claims were brought regarding Nintendo’s “wii-mote.”

LegalTech New York

This week at LegalTech New York the FBI warned that law firms are increasingly becoming the target of hackers.  Mary Galligan, special agent in charge of cyber and special operations, went on to say that cyberintrusions are more dangerous and sophisticated than just a few years ago.  With the amount of documents sent by law firms on a daily basis, they are an easy target for skilled hackers.  Galligan gave several examples of what’s being done.  She said having up-to-date network diagrams, physical access logs, and legal notices upon logging in are all helpful methods to prevent them, adding that Firewalls, intrusion detection systems, remote access servers, virtual private networks, and web servers all also should be logged.  Derrick Donnelly, CTO of mobile forensics company BlackBag Technologies Inc., mentioned that they are seeing increased security on smartphones, citing the new iOS operating system on iPhones as an example. Leaders of firms’ security operations maintain that the best form of law firm security is still risk awareness training. Not only is this a safety issue, but are required under ABA Rules of Professional Responsibility 1.1 and 1.6.

Samsung and Apple: The Battle Continues

Samsung’s attempt to block sales of the iPhone and iPad in Japan failed last week.  The judge ruled that the Korean firm didn’t negotiate in good faith with Apple before bringing the case to court.  The judge also ruled that Samsung did not have a right to seek damages from Apple.  The case in Japan is just one of many between the world’s two largest makers of smartphones.  Samsung had won a previous case in Japanese court in which Apple alleged Samsung had infringed its patents.  Samsung also prevailed in a British case, with the judge finding that Apple had to reissue its apology to Samsung because in addition to stating that Samsung had not infringed any patents, the apology included quotes from British consumers that Samsung tablets were “not as cool” as apples.

The biggest news of the week is certainly the election.  And in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, New Jersey announced that it will allow residents to vote by e-mail.  While some feel this is simply a sign of things to come, the decision has been met with harsh criticism from several parties.  NJ assures that the vote will be secure, and that residents who vote by e-mail will have to send in a hard copy of the ballot.

NJ’s email vote isn’t the only controversy surrounding voting in this election.  Ohio congressional candidate John Fitrakis filed a suit to block the use of electronic voting.  While Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted dismisses Fitrakis’ concerns as ridiculous, professional hacker and researcher for Argonne National Laboratory’s Vulnerability Assessment Team Roger Johnston suggests it may not be so farfetched, as he demonstrated.

There have also been reports of electronic voting machines breaking down. Despite the concerns, it is obvious that technology will continue to play an increased role in future elections for the foreseeable future.

Insane in the Membrane

Cypress Hill backup singer Michael “Shagg” Washington lost his $250 million lawsuit against Take-Two Interactive and Rockstar games.  The suit alleged that Rockstar misappropriated Shagg’s likeness in creating Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas main character, Carl Johnson.  In ruling for Rockstar, the judge stated that Shagg “failed to establish a probability of defeating Take-Two’s First Amendment-based ‘transformative use’ defense,” and that he “is relying entirely on C.J.’s physical appearance in the game, but that appearance is so generic that it necessarily includes hundreds of other black males.”  The court also found the fact that CJ’s appearance could be significantly altered in the game, either by working out to pack on muscle or eating fast food to gain weight, weighed in Rockstar’s favor.   Without other evidence that Rockstar used his likeness, such as tattoos or a link between their backgrounds, Shagg could not prove his allegations.

A lawsuit of this nature between a celebrity and video game developer is by no means unique.  Just last month rock band No Doubt settled its dispute with Activision after No Doubt alleged fraud, violation of publicity rights and breach of contract for use of lead singer Gwen Stefani’s likeness in its game Band Hero. Activision is also in ongoing litigation with Guns ‘N Roses lead singer Axl Rose for similar claims.

Acquire You I Did, Lucasfilms

In a blockbuster deal, George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, sold Lucasfilms to Disney for a reported price of approximately $4.05 billion.  The deal continues a trend for Disney of acquiring established movie developers, as it did when it acquired Pixar and Marvel in recent years.  Reaction to the deal has been mixed; some see this as a great move by Lucas to assure that the Star Wars franchise will live on for generations, while others believe that Star Wars is no longer a profitable franchise.  Still others fear what Disney will do to the Star Wars franchise as a whole.  Lucas spoke about the deal and his reasons for selling the beloved franchise.

Regardless of where you sand on this deal, one thing is certain: Star Wars VII is coming.

Apple

It was a mixed week for Apple, as it received 29 new patents, including one for the original iPad design, but had its patent infringement suit against Google and Motorola dismissed by a Wisconsin court.  The suit was dismissed with prejudice when the judge decided she did not have authority to hear the case.  It remains to be seen whether Apple will refile, but Google remains open to a settlement.