Why now?

Why do these people wait for years after the technology hits the market before they decided they invented it?

Did they forget they invented it? Were they sitting in their living rooms one day looking at their new Blu-ray player and they thought "hey that reminds me, I invented blue lasers years ago! I must remember to start a lawsuit on Monday morning"?

Or maybe they sleep in the lab and never get out and then one day someone comes in and says "hey, you know that laser thingy we invented - they are actually using them now out there, and guess what? They are blue as well!"

Yeah, I know there's more to it than that, but please ...

I was wondering when..

this was going to happen. I remember seeing a huge deal about blue laser diodes in Popular Science around 6 years ago, give or take a year (my memory isn't what it used to be). They were ranting and raving how this new technology would revolutionize the DVD way of life.

It seems to me that a lot of these patent-holders will let a technology gain a foot-hold in the market before they release allegations about infringement. Whether or not that is the case, or if they just finally realize they had their idea stolen, they always seem to speak up at a pivitol point. How many other stories in the past few MONTHS has everyone seen other patent infringement cases here on INQ?

Now you see what I mean.

Motorola

Motorola is not American?


PH: Cough! Rumbled. Text tweaked to more closely reflect reality. Self flagellated.

Blu - Ray laser concept been around a long while

I recall reading several engineering articles about the use of Blue wave length laser on CD Players and potentially for a video disc format. This was about the time the first generation DVD players were being announced. Even then Toshiba was trying to come out with their own format,; that is another issue, but thankfully that attempt by Toshiba failed, before product introduction. I do remember that several folks were discussing holding DVD until the blue wavelength laser could be refined.

This looks too much like another, in a very long list of people and companies trying to leverage, for big dollars, overly broad to potentially outright fraudulent patents. Patents that should not have been issued, but because of over work and under-staffing at the US Patent Office these patents were approved.

Government Paid w/tax

Works for a public Univerisity, yes. Then maybe we all should get in on the action due to the fact that public taxes were used to pay this person and develop the technology. I don't know about most of you but if I work for someone else and get paid for my tiem, then what I develop on their dime is NOT mine.

Why they wait

The patent holders wait for a large number of reasons, among them:

1) Waiting for the patent office to issue the patent (can take years).

2) Collecting evidence that your patent is actually being used.

3) Hitting an empass while negotiating with the manufacturers and litigating to get around it.

Re: Why they wait

You forgot the most important one;

Always better to trip the trap when somethings foot is in it.
(Far more money to be litigated for when a number of companies are actively using it, rather then simply stopping them from using it in the first place)

no not ours

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_University
Columbia University is actually private

Government Paid w/tax

Often, professors may be paid out of endowment donations. More often, uni research is paid for by government grants. So there is still a lot for BlueEyes to beweep. I believe universities sharehold patents. I doubt if the Graduate assistants get any take for all the real work. Another reason for waiting, is it increases the likely settlement amounts, because profitability to unit sold can be factored.
I'm no expert. Just speculating.

Sheesh...

> It seems to me that a lot of these > patent-holders > will let a technology gain a foot-hold in the market

Well, yeah, Einstein.

Tomorrow's mystery "Why do people in Casinos who get the Jackpot on a fruit machine stand around shortly afterwards? It seems to me that jackpot winners often wait for the money? Perhaps not, but it's a coincidence...."

Odd..

I thought the blue/violet laser diodes were patanted by Nakamura of Nichia Co. Ltd, Japan. Till a few years ago, these were the only guys selling blue/violet laser diodes.

If they are talking about SHG typed lasers, then that also has been around for a long time and has nothing to do with the person suing these companies.

Anyone for a moral crusade?

Well aside from that there are other more morally ambiguous reasons.
I meen if i invented something so useful i'd want them to use it for long enough that a court case would award a large enough lump sum in royalties to bankrupt what would have been my competion and give enough liquid assets to make a manufacturable product myself and simply deny them use of you patented device to monopolise the market.
Second it's their god given right to demand tribute whenever the hell they feel like it under law due to the fact they spent the time going through legal channels to patent and as such is only fair that people research for pre-patented ideas and negotiate royalty fee's.
I meen if i knock up a wooden boardgame out in my yard and it was stolen, it doesn't actually matter if i know the person or have not taken action about it for 2 or more years as they still aren't the legal owner and it's still theft.
The last point is also part of the first as i would choose a time when the technology has presented significant advantage to a company as it proves the value of the patent as well as patent processes and allows for adequate punishment for corporations who wrongly believe they can do whatever they like without recieving so much as a kick in the pants for it later.
but call me an arsehole, it's the american dream ;)

Let them eat Cake

Perhaps more nefarious, but you also have the value side of things. Patent trolling and Patent companies would absolutely swoon at the prospects of such a case should the fine lady win.

"Let them eat cake"... once everyones making them... you can charge more for the icing only you provided... to everyone, assuming some amusingly strange but sufficiently visual patent icing monopoly here.

Evidence is key, but the more valuable your patent, and the more groups that attempt to use it, work around it, or reverse engineer it the better your potential value/windfall and the more demand for your patents beneficial uses to drive it's continued use... until someone finds a better way...

Invalid?

The patent cannot have been granted in February. It must be the complaint that was filed in February.

Blue laser diode technology dates back to 1995/1996 so any patent would have to date that far back.

And it would have to be about details on specifics about how to manufacture blue laser diodes rather than the concept or the patent would have been rejected.

What is the patent number?!?

Error

Rothschild filed the patent in 1988 not February.

The Patent numbers 4,904,618 and 5,252,499 are both are techniques on how to make semiconductors.

This looks like a REAL patent infringement!

Shuji Nakamura invented them, not this woman

Scamtastic.

It's well documented that Shuji Nakamura invented the blue LEDs, blue laser diodes and the solid state physics that support it DECADES ago.

And he's been working on them ever since.

http://archive.sciencewatch.com/jan-feb2000/sw_jan-feb2000_page3.htm

Did WHAT last February?

That professor can't havr filled a patent in February 2008 and be obtaining an FTC injunction now and on that basis. Please check the facts.
I bet he filed a patent a long time ago, and filed an FTV complaint in February.

Filing Date

"Rothschild filed the patent in February."

Rothschild filed her application in August 22, 1988

U.S. Patent No. 4,904,618 was granted to her on February 27, 1990

Rothschild filed her complaint in February of this year.

Small world

I did a summer internship under prof. Neumark (don't remember the Rothschild being part of her name back then) working on photoluminescence studies on GaN (gallium nitride-- part of the then elusive blue-light emitting diode work.) Now I work for Intel. Luckily Intel is not named in the suit-- no testifying for me!