Kootol targets Apple, more on patent it doesn't own yet

Unknown software house Kootol on Friday sent notice to many companies claiming that they allegedly violate a messaging patent. It targets a wide swath of the industry that includes Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Foursquare, Microsoft, Nokia, RIM, Twitter, and others all allegedly violate a patent for "Method and System for Communication, Advertising, Searching, Sharing and Dynamically Providing a Journal Feed." Unusually, Kootol doesn't actually have the patent and is instead acting on a Notice of Allowance that lets it act on the patent but still requires that it pay for the patent later.

The allegations focus on "using one way or two way messaging and by subscribing to posts of other users of a network" and accordingly focus heavily on Twitter and its ecosystem. Twitterrific creator Iconfactory, UberSocial's designer UberMedia, Seesmic, and photo hosting site TwitPic are all included in the infringement notices.

The India-based company was established by Vijay and Yogesh Rathod just last year and is operating under questionable circumstances. Despite its claims of having a "Dynamic Communication & Real Time Search Engine," the company only has a vague description of the service and a short, generic presentation. Its front page prominently focuses on the lone patent and licensing, making it clear the main intent is to profit from royalties and lawsuits.

Kootol may face an uphill battle trying to act on its claimed ownership. It had filed for the patent only in December 2010, more than four years after Twitter was founded and further still after similar services from some of the older companies, such as BlackBerry Messenger. Many of the newer services like Foursquare and Yammer also existed before the patent was filed. A chance exists that the patent will be invalidated based on prior art.

By Electronista Staff

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Apple bulking up legal team for future patent battles

Apple has been bolstering its legal team with at least two new major recruiting drives. The iPhone maker's primary hunt is for a Senior Patent Litigation Counsel that would manage major patent issues and outside legal teams. Any new hire would more crucially be "formulating and driving strategy" for Apple's broader patent efforts, although what that meant was left open.

A more conventional Legal Counsel position would be "driving case strategies" on more general subjects that come up frequently. Antitrust, class action, copyright, product liability, and trademark would be some of the more common focuses.

The two new positions would come just as Apple is instituting a new head counsel and at a moment of peak activity for Apple's legal team. Apple has not only been engaged in lawsuits both against and from Android phone makers such as HTC and Samsung but has more recently been doubling up, adding one or more extra cases as new patents or products come under scrutiny. New senior counsel might help it decide how to pursue these cases or whether to pursue them at all.

New hires could also play a defensive role. Those Apple has targeted, Samsung included, have often launched countersuits. It may likewise be keen to avoid the long-term legal trouble it has faced from its approach to earlier cases, such as the large settlement with Nokia. As with other major technology firms, Apple is also a frequent tempting target for patent trolls and may want to help preempt these cases or better tackle them when they appear.