Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the first - Einstein
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Nokia is asking users for patent ideas
FINNISH PHONE MAKER Nokia has launched a crowd sourcing initiative to harvest patent ideas for future products.
Despite being in bed with Microsoft to build future products, it seems Nokia is sniffing around everywhere it can to help it find ideas to develop a decent smartphone.
In the wake of tumbling to potential irrelevance in the smartphone market, the Finnish company has launched an 'Invent With Nokia' programme to get ideas by crowd sourcing the great unwashed.
Anyone can sign up and register their ideas at the Invent With Nokia web site if they think they have an idea, any idea, that can be submitted for the Nokia product design team to look into.
But Nokia isn't just looking at potential patent ideas for future kit, the company also wants the public's ideas about anything Nokia can do to get itself out of the downwards spiral it's in. That means Nokia will look at ideas for products, services and other ways to get the once mighty mobile phone maker back on its feet.
Good ideas will be discussed under a non-disclosure agreement and, if the idea is taken onboard and patented for use in future devices, Nokia might give you some cash for the patent. If it's successful with punters Nokia might splash out even more cash for you.
But that would be nothing were it without the chance to enter Nokia's inventors' hall of fame.
"In addition to the monetary rewards, you'll also take your place in a hall of fame, giving you public recognition for your invention so everybody will know who you are," wrote Nokia in a blog post.
To avoid sounding too desperate, Nokia also said it already has thousands of its own people busy innovating. µ
Tags: Hardware
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How about this for an idea, don't know if you can patent it though, but it's still a good one.
Make reliable phones, don't give up and dump faulty things like the N97 and leave customers still paying a 24 month contract on something you've given up on.
When a fault is found (like the scratching lens cover or faulty GPS), admit it, in public, and recall the faulty devices.
When someone complains about a problem in the Nokia forum, listen, ask yourself "Why is our customer unhappy?", don't just send the mods in who delete posts for "disrespecting Nokia". The only disrespect going on was towards the end user.
Sort out centralised firmware updates, don't allow carriers to customise and hold up updates. The end user doesn't know that (insert carrier name here) is responsible for holding back or cancelling firmware updates, all they know is the Nokia in their hand is a buggy pile of poo. And all their friends know is that the Nokia they have seen is a buggy pile of poo. Your failure to keep end users supported and up to date results in more than just the owner steering clear of Nokia when renewal time comes round, it results in their friends avoiding you too.
If you had done the I would still be a 10 year+ Nokia customer and Nokia might still have a good reputation for quality.
Instead I'm a happy owner of an HTC Android phone, and you're just about to be ass-laminated by the Borg.
Oh, and I'm a developer too, so guess what platform I'm developing for and recommending now?
So basically Nokia is openly soliciting ideas from others, so it can fraudulently claim to be the inventor with a patent application.
But it's OK for Nokia to lie, though, because it's going to bribe its victims to prostitute themselves for Nokia's monopolistic benefit.
Uh-huh.
Fire half the managers starting with the one that came up with this "idea".
Go ask your boss balmer, he has a whole bunch in his drawer.
As a public service to the rest of the planet, why doesn't Nokia patent selling your soul to Microsoft? This would prevent other companies from falling into the same corporate death-spiral trap, and let Microsoft sink into oblivion on its own (also as a public service).
I'll send them my ideas. Along with a patent number at the bottom of the text, terms of licence - and what I will expect in royalties.
... of desperation