eBay in 'Buy It Now' Patent Dispute 292
smooth wombat writes "The Office of the Solicitor General of the United States has filed a brief with the Supreme Court, taking the side of MercExchange who is in a patent dispute with eBay over eBays Buy It Now feature. Two lower courts have already upheld MercExchange's patents including finding that eBay had willfully infringed on the Buy It Now patent.
Later this month the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments. The Office of Solicitor General is arguing eBay should be barred from using Buy It Now due to the decision of two lower courts that upheld MercExchange's patents. eBay is arguing that infringements should not automatically result in injunctions and shutdowns."
Wave bye-bye to karma... (Score:4, Funny)
To be followed by... (Score:4, Funny)
Buy it now - NOW! (Score:5, Funny)
Solution, put the 'Buy it Now' patent on sale on eBay using the 'Buy it Now' feature for $50 million. Ebay will buy it then, and the problem is solved.
Real store patent? (Score:3, Funny)
Waaah (Score:3, Funny)
"Yeah, we know we've been found guilty of using something illegally... but that doesn't mean we should be stopped from using it! C'mon!"
So this is why... (Score:5, Funny)
This explains my inability to get laid in high school: It never occurred to me to discuss the politics of patent law with my dates...
Workaround (Score:5, Funny)
A button that says:
Buy it... wait... Ok, now
In other news. . . (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Non-obvious? (Score:4, Funny)
Like email on a cell phone. I should patent that! Errr, wait, did someone do that already? OK, I'll patent auctions in space and email in space, I don't think anyone's done that yet.
It's all just a load of crap.
Re:How is this an "Invention"? (Score:5, Funny)
You should limit your statements to newspaper print only. You are violating my patent on editorializing via electronic media.
add ".. on the internet" to fortune cookie (Score:5, Funny)
Except this is the business model.
Add "on the internet" to your fortune or anything else.
It is patentable, unless someone beat to to it.
Examples:
Fortune says: "Don't wait for happiness, buy it now"
Patent: Buy it now
Fortune: Do not sell your horse, if you can instead sell you cat.
Patent: Online cat bidding system
In other news... (Score:4, Funny)
Look over there! (Score:3, Funny)
Re:My new patent is the best of them all (Score:5, Funny)
Would just calling it something different such as deploying the troops or dropping the kids off at the pool be a way around your patent?
Also, you could probably get this patent passed easier if you make it "Taking a crap on the Internet." Then again, there's some prior art for that (spammers, AOL, and Internet Explorer, for example).
Can I patent this? (Score:3, Funny)
Following their lead, my next patents will be.... (Score:2, Funny)