If you’ve signed into any Google related account in the past week you will have noticed Google has updated it’s privacy policies. Most casual users probably won’t bother reading the changes, however Microsoft have come out firing at Google by placing full-page ads in a selection of major American newspapers criticising the changes.
Well we did promise an update on the interesting story of Ric Richardson, who was appealing a US court decision in favour of Microsoft for a patent infringement. As a positive note for his cause, he has been successful this week in the appeals court in reinstating the original ruling, which ordered Microsoft to pay Uniloc $338 million USD for the infringement.
Richardson is a well-known inventor, who invented the patent in question which was aimed at software piracy detection, in the 1990s.
Whats next for this man? Sony and McAfee apparently! Watch this space.
View the full article on Sydney Morning Herald here.
Sydney Morning Herald published an article on 17 August 2010, reporting that Microsoft is encouraging customers to cease using Internet Explorer 6 (IE6) and upgrade to the newer version, IE8, immediately. Microsoft is insistent that customers do so, to the extent that it is making the recommendation that customers upgrade to competitors browers.
When asked why, Microsoft says “IE6 is a nine-year-old web browser and doesn’t sufficiently protect users from the latest security threats. Microsoft is urging customers to upgrade to the latest version of Internet Explorer so that they are not leaving themselves vulnerable.”
Consumers appear to be of the mindset, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, however security threats have changed and browsers need to be upgraded.
Sydney Morning Herald reports today that Ric Richardson, owner of Uniloc, who won a multimillion dollar lawsuit against Microsoft for the use of his patent, only to face the horror of having the decision overturned, is launching further lawsuits against Sony America, McAfee Security, Activision (maker of video games), and Quark, Borland Software and Aspyr Media (software makers).
Mr Richardson contends that his patent has stood up to legal scrutiny, so he is taking these new lawsuits on principle. However, if succesful, the damages awarded will be given to charity.
Richardson, patented the technology designed to deter software piracy in the early 1990′s, and the proceedings against Microsoft have been ongoing since 2003. And yes, Uniloc is appealing the Microsoft decision to overthrow its lawsuit, by alleging bias from the Judge.
Stay tuned, this saga will be interesting…..
