Apple, AT&T sued over iPhone’s Visual Voicemail feature

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Apple, AT&T sued over iPhone’s Visual Voicemail feature

New York-based Klausner Technologies has filed suit against Apple and AT&T over the iPhone’s Visual Voicemail feature, claiming patent infringement and seeking $360 million in damages and future royalties. In a statement, Klausner said it believes the iPhone “violates Klausner’s intellectual-property rights by allowing users to selectively retrieve voice messages via the iPhone’s inbox display.” The company also claims that founder Judah Klausner was “the inventor of the PDA and electronic organizer.” Klausner Technologies has previously filed similar patent-infringement suits against Comcast, Cablevision, and eBay’s Skype VoIP service.

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Comments

1

I love it when companies that don’t release a goddamn thing come back and sue! How about release a product with the feature you claimed to have created and you won’t have to worry about suing?!?!

Posted by Frank Z on December 3, 2007 at 1:44 PM (PDT)

2

They’re a bit late aren’t they? They should have known about this in Jan.

Posted by Japester on December 3, 2007 at 4:10 PM (PDT)

3

What this article fails to mention is that the company also invented air. You know the thing we breath. They are in the middle of a pending lawsuit right now with God.

Posted by sdasda on December 3, 2007 at 8:55 PM (PDT)

4

I wonder when they claim that they invented this feature. I recall having a cell phone at least 8 years ago in Japan that had the ability to pick which voice mail to listen to from a list.

Posted by Robert Kawaratani on December 4, 2007 at 12:11 AM (PDT)

5

I wanted to write a nice paragraph BUT somehow it’s not worth. Just another company who did and want and do and will. ... no backbone these companies these days

Posted by dennis on December 4, 2007 at 5:04 AM (PDT)

6

Hey ... Klausner ... I invented the slide rule ... where’s my cut? You’re such a putz.

Posted by ipodder06 on December 4, 2007 at 6:51 AM (PDT)

7

If the two patents in question are legit, then there’s not a lot Apple can do about it. After reading the description of the actual mid-1990s patents (U.S. Patents 5,572,576 and 5,283,818) on the U.S. Patent website, it does seem to cover exactly how the iPhone can identify and select voice mail. Klausner does claim that they have licensed the patent to other companies; if that’s indeed the case then Apple has even less of chance of fighting this guy off.

As to how late is too late: how do you know if Klausner hasn’t been negotiating (or attempting to) with Apple all along? Legal affairs—particularly contractual ones—rarely move very fast, especially if one party (Apple, for instance) isn’t all that motivated to come to terms.

Posted by flatline response on December 4, 2007 at 7:29 AM (PDT)

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