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What a joke,
do you really think they picked up any shares?
Big Girl? :0 :)
JP - Agreed. Review:
Numbers of patent, trademark infringement suits skyrocketing
By LAURA LAYDEN, lllayden@naplesnews.com
January 19, 2004
NeoMedia owns a bridge.
It's an expensive bridge the company has built to connect the real world with the virtual world.
If you want to cross that bridge, you'll have to pay. Otherwise, you're in for a bumpy ride.
That's the message Fort Myers-based NeoMedia Technologies Inc. sends in a lawsuit filed on Jan. 2 against Virgin Entertainment Group Inc. and its subsidiaries Virgin Megastore and Virgin Megastore Online in Los Angeles.
NeoMedia, a company whose shares trade publicly on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board, claims Virgin has infringed on four of its patents by using a technology that allows customers in its stores to scan CDs and DVDs to get information on the Internet, such as movie previews and video art.
While this marks the first patent infringement lawsuit NeoMedia has filed since it was founded in 1989, it's part of a larger trend in Southwest Florida and across the country.
Patent infringement suits have skyrocketed over the last decade. And so have the number of trademark infringement suits, which have sucked up the financial resources of several Southwest Florida companies in the last year including Sunshine Ace Hardware and Cheeburger Cheeburger.
According to the Administrative Office of U.S. Courts, the number of patent suits grew from 1,553 in 1993 to 2,700 in 2002, a 74 percent increase.
In 2002, trademark suits filed in the United States swelled to 3,470, a 61.5 percent increase over a decade ago. In 1993, they numbered 2,149.
"I think you are seeing an increase in intellectual property issues because intellectual property is becoming increasingly important in the marketplace today," said Jennifer Whitelaw, a Naples-based patent and trademark attorney. "Businesses are realizing that intellectual property in many instances is the most important thing they've got."
Whitelaw, the owner of Whitelaw Legal Group, has been recognized as one of the nation's top trademarkers by Intellectual Property Today, an Illinois-based trade magazine. She not only helps businesses and individuals get patents, but helps them defend their patents.
"Our clients are all around the country and all around the world," Whitelaw said. "We could have this practice anywhere, but Naples is a great place for business, a great place for emerging business, and that makes it a great place for us to serve the needs of intellectual property rights."
The firm has represented such well-known companies as Allstate Insurance, H&R Block and Sony. Earlier this year, Whitelaw added Sunshine Ace Hardware in Southwest Florida to the firm's client roster.
The hardware company, which has stores in Bonita Springs, Naples, Golden Gate and San Carlos Park, has accused Home Depot of infringing on its slogan "You Can Do It. We Can Help." The two chains are working to resolve the lawsuit.
Because of the increasing demand for patent and trademark services, Whitelaw says she's busier than ever. "Our business grows every year," she said.
Intellectual property attorneys across the country share in her good fortune.
As an example of the growing number of trademark suits in the United States, Microsoft Corp. alone faces more than two dozen.
The payoff can be big in intellectual property cases, especially for patent infringement cases. Some say that's why business is booming for patent attorneys across the country.
"I think what is happening is that more and more people are getting an understanding or becoming more sophisticated and understand that if someone is infringing on your patent, there could be a lot of money involved," said Jeff Pine, a partner in Baniak Pine & Gannon, an intellectual property firm in Chicago that is representing NeoMedia in its case against Virgin.
Pine points to a federal jury's decision in August to award Eolas Technologies, a Chicago-based software company, and the University of California more than $520 million in damages after finding Microsoft infringed on a patent owned by the university.
While at the University of California, Eolas chairman Michael Doyle and others developed a technology that allows computer users to access interactive programs embedded in Web pages. University and Eolas officials say Microsoft incorporated the technology in its Internet Explorer and Windows software without their permission.
The jury award was based on royalties for 354 million copies of Windows sold between November 1998 and September 2001.
"The size of the awards over the last 10 or 15 years has grown," Pine said. "That is what gets people's attention. Nobody cares about a small award."
Other experts attribute the increase in intellectual property disputes to a more friendly court system for patent holders and a flurry of patent filings seen since the early 1990s.
Defending its turf
NeoMedia has patents for technology that uses machine readable codes, such as UPCs, to link people to the Internet, where they can obtain information electronically.
In the lawsuit filed against Virgin, NeoMedia says the mega entertainment company is using the same type of scanning technology in kiosks inside its mega entertainment stores in Illinois. The kiosks allow shoppers to get information on the Internet by scanning the covers of DVDs and CDs.
"We are not doing a good job for our shareholders if somebody just goes in on our turf," said Chas Fritz, chairman and founder of NeoMedia. "We need to defend that for our shareholders."
NeoMedia, whose stock currently trades for pennies a share, has 13 patents for its technology and others pending. The patents cover linking the real world to the electronic world from a number of devices including camera phones, and wands and pens that can be used to scan codes in printed documents, such as a newspaper or magazine, to link directly to a Web site.
NeoMedia's services are marketed under the PaperClick trademark.
"We are in the bridge-building business," Fritz said. "We are building a bridge from the physical world to the nonphysical world and we are welcoming anyone to come onto the bridge that we built. But there is a charge for it."
Fritz said his company prefers not to file lawsuits and to use its patents as a way to partner with other companies. Companies that want to use its technology can pay a licensing fee, which is a negotiated amount, he explained.
Otherwise, NeoMedia's technology is protected and companies must find a way to build their own bridge without infringing on its patents, he said.
NeoMedia hired Chicago-based intellectual property specialists Baniak Pine & Gannon to look out for its interests and enforce its patents about a year and a half ago. More companies are doing the same, as they realize the importance of defending their trademarks and patents, experts say.
In the United States, patented technology is protected for 20 years, starting from the date a company or individual applies for the patent. If a patent is revised, the time clock is moved forward to the date the new patent was applied for, which gives inventors a longer period of exclusivity. NeoMedia's earliest patents date back to the early 1990s.
U.S. patents only offer protections in this country. It's for that reason that NeoMedia is now looking to get patents for its technology in other parts of the world.
NeoMedia seeks damages in its case against Virgin Entertainment. But the amount of money it will ask for has yet to be determined, said Pine. More research is needed to determine how Virgin may have benefited from using the technology in its kiosks, he said.
Virgin Entertainment has yet to respond to the lawsuit, which was served last week, Pine said. Representatives for the company could not be reached for this story.
NeoMedia's complaint alleges that Virgin has known about its patents for at least a year. Companies that knowingly infringe on patents can face monetary penalties up to three times the amount they'd pay if they are found to be doing it unintentionally.
NeoMedia says it first notified Virgin that it was infringing on its patents on Dec. 20, 2002.
"We sent them a letter a while back and they haven't commented," Pine said. "They haven't told us what they think. They were obviously not going to respond, so we had to take the next step."
NeoMedia, with annual revenues of about $9.4 million last year, is a small fish taking on a big fish.
Virgin Entertainment sells music, movies, books, games and other related merchandise in stores across the country. Store locations include Miami, Chicago, Long Island, Boston and Las Vegas.
Virgin Entertainment is part of a group of companies marketed under the Virgin brand, which originated in Britain. Virgin is involved in everything from planes to bridal wear. There are more than 200 companies operating under the brand worldwide, and as a group Virgin had revenues of more than $5 billion in 1999, according to a company Web site.
Not alone
NeoMedia is far from the only local company that has found itself putting up a fight for its intellectual property.
Other companies that have been wrapped up in patent suits are Arthrex Inc., a Naples-based company that develops medical devices used in arthroscopic surgery, and SmartDisk, a Fort-Myers based technology company.
The local companies haven't always been the ones to initiate legal action.
In June 2000, PC Connector Solutions LLC filed a patent infringement suit against SmartDisk claiming the local company's Smarty and FlashPath products infringed on a patent it owns.
In December, SmartDisk announced it had received a favorable judgment in the suit filed against the company and Fuji Photo Film USA.
SmartDisk develops, manufactures, markets and distributes products that enhance the use of miniature storage media and smart cards. Company officials declined to comment for this story.
PC Connector is appealing the judgment, according to a SmartDisk news release.
Arthrex has found itself on both sides of patent infringement disputes. The company is a leading provider of medical instruments for arthroscopic surgery, which involves making small incisions in joints, such as knees, shoulders and wrists, to treat disease and injury, from arthritis to bone fractures and cartilage tears. The company's earliest patent dates back to 1987. The company now has about 200.
Because of the high-tech industry it's in, patent protection has always been a concern for Arthrex, said John Schmieding, the company's general counsel.
"It's imperative in such a competitive market to file and obtain a patent on your invention and also to monitor what your competitors are doing to protect your rights," he said. "That is a constant effort."
Clueing in
In the dot-com boom, companies and inventors began to focus more on patent and other laws protecting intellectual property in the United States.
In the early 1990s, there were aggressive patent filings by IBM and a few other high-tech companies, such as Intel and Hewlett-Packard. Other companies followed to ensure they were protected against a patent attack and didn't end up on the losing end of a lawsuit.
"People really clued into the patent law when they found out that priceline.com was the only one that could do the name your own price sales technique," said John Cyril Malloy III, a partner in the intellectual property firm Malloy & Malloy in Miami and an adjunct professor of intellectual property at St. Thomas University Law School, also in Miami.
Partly as a result of the flurry of patent filings, the "economic engine of intellectual property law litigation has been running hot for the last decade," he said.
Patent activity remains strong in this country and that's likely to mean more intellectual property suits in the future.
It's not just high-tech companies looking to protect their inventions. Applications are coming in for inventions in hundreds of categories, from apparel to dispensing products.
"People are figuring out that they should patent everything and anything," said Martin Reynolds, a technology analyst at Gartnergroup's Dataquest, a market research firm based in San Jose, Calif. "It turns out sometimes that the strangest things have value. You would never imagine something you might patent might become the linchpin for a new technology."
He said a recent trend has been patent suits filed by "dead companies" that own nothing but their patents. A lot of them are Internet type companies that fell victim to the dot-com crash, he said.
Also, he said, many companies get patents so they can share technologies with other companies. They see their patents as a way to quickly negotiate away infringement suits, he said.
Patents rise
In 2002, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Washington, D.C., approved a record number of patents — nearly 184,000. Of that total, 91 percent — or 167,334 — were utility patents. The most common patents are utility patents, which cover industrial or technical processes, machines and other manufactured products.
California inventors led the way in claiming more than a 20 percent share in all patents issued to U.S. residents in 2002. They were followed by New York residents.
In 2002, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office received 355,418 new applications for patents. So it doesn't it appear that patent activity is going to slow any time soon.
It usually takes at least two years from the time an application is filed to get patent approval, said Ruth Nyblod, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
To qualify for a patent, an invention must be novel, useful and non-obvious, she said.
"It's good to do your homework ahead of time," Nyblod said. "Your invention has to be new. So if there is anything similar, it may preclude you from getting a patent."
A monopoly
Patent law is driven by the U.S. Patent Act and by the court cases that interpret it, which have caused some confusion over the years. The right of the patent is "the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling" an invention in the United States or "importing the invention into the United States," according to U.S. law.
The U.S. patent law is part of the U.S. Constitution. Congress created the patent system to encourage innovation by giving people a limited monopoly on their creations. In exchange for those rights, inventors make their inventions public and must disclose the best way to make or use the invention.
There are three types of patents. Besides utility patents, there are patents for new designs for manufactured products and new plant varieties.
Approved patents can be found on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Web site at www.uspto.gov. They can also be looked up in libraries across the country.
Patent documents must include a detailed description of an invention and at least one claim, which is the enforceable part of the patent.
The claims say what an invention does, and anyone making or selling a product that is described in those claims can find themselves in a patent infringement suit. However, that doesn't mean they'll find themselves in front of a jury.
While the number of patent lawsuits has been on the rise over the last decade, few ever go to trial.
"Most of these cases settle," said Pine, of Baniak Pine & Gannon. "Maybe 90 to 99 percent of these cases historically have settled and usually the settlement agreement is confidential. Because of that nobody knows what happened. They just know there was a lawsuit."
Because almost any lawyer can handle trademark cases they are more common than patent suits, said Malloy, a partner in Malloy & Malloy in Miami.
Patent infringement suits must be handled by registered patent attorneys, and also patents are more rare than trademarks so that also tends to limit the number of patent cases filed, he said.
Generally, the first one to either use a slogan or name or to file an intent to use them with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has the ultimate right to use them. Unlike patents, trademarks do not have to be registered for their users to have protection rights. However, the registration comes with many advantages, including the notice to others of its ownership and a presumption of legal ownership nationwide.
Registered trademarks can be found on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Web site. The rights to those trademarks exist as long as they continue to be used.
Say Cheeburger
In the last year, several Southwest Florida companies have been involved in trademark suits including Fort-Myers based Cheeburger Cheeburger Restaurants Inc.
In December 2003, a Chicago tavern made famous in a 1970s "Saturday Night Live" skit sued the local company over the slogan it uses for its 16 Florida eateries.
The Billy Goat Tavern filed the trademark infringement suit in the federal district of Chicago, alleging that the Southwest Florida chain fraudulently obtained a trademark on the name "Cheeburger Cheeburger."
The tavern has used the "Cheezborger Cheezborger" trademark since the late 1970s, and it's printed on a sign at the tavern and emblazoned on hats and T-shirts. The cast of "Saturday Night Live" created a skit around the phrase "Cheezborger Cheezborger, no fries," which brought the tavern national fame when John Belushi played the part of a frenzied Greek cook. The case brought against Cheeburger Cheeburger was settled quickly and Malloy, who represented the local restaurant chain, said the chain's decision to file for a federal trademark on its name in 1988 ensured it a favorable outcome.
"The trademark registration owned by our client in the Cheeburger, Cheeburger case was absolutely pivotal for the tremendous outcome for our client," he said. "You do obtain trademark rights by virtue of having used a name or slogan, but the federal trademark registration solidifies those rights and expands them across the country, even though you may not have locations across the country."
Billy Goat tavern filed the suit to try to stop Cheeburger, Cheeburger from opening a restaurant in Glenview, Ill., Malloy said.
Under the settlement, Cheeburger, Cheeburger was allowed to open its restaurant in the Chicago area under the name "Cheeburger Big is Better," Malloy said.
In the settlement, Cheeburger Cheeburger agreed not to open up any more restaurants in Chicago. On the flip side, Billy Goat's owners agreed not to use its "Cheezborger Cheezborger" slogan outside the Chicago area, Malloy said.
In June 2003, Sunshine Ace Hardware filed a federal suit against Home Depot. The suit alleges the advertising slogan adopted by Home Depot's parent company, Homer TLC Inc., infringes on Sunshine Ace Hardware's trademarked slogan and creates unfair competition, injuring its business.
The trademarked slogan is "You can do it. We can Help." In its suit, Sunshine Ace Hardware, which began selling hardware in 1964, asks for more than $500,000 in damages. It seeks an injunction to stop Home Depot from using any materials with the slogan and to stop employees and other representatives for the home improvement giant from using the saying.
Home Depot unveiled its new ad slogan, "The Home Depot is more than a store. You can do it. We can Help," in February of last year.
In October, Home Depot and Sunshine Ace Hardware officials said they were trying to resolve their differences and hoped to reach a settlement within 90 days.
Whitelaw, the Naples patent and trademark attorney representing Sunshine Ace Hardware in the case, said businesses big and small should take every step they can to protect their names, slogans and inventions before it's too late.
"It's just a marketplace reality," she said. "Doing business today means you've got to be aware of your intellectual property rights."
Copyright 2004, Naples Daily News. All Rights Reserved.
Thanks JP:
You can leave me points like that all day long - on or off line.
AutoSim looks like a powerful partner. Did I miss them, or is this a relatively new alliance?
The foundation that has been laid is truly amazing. It looks like NeoMedia Technologies is poised to be a one source mobile marketing machine.
A New Partner?
Now you see them, now you don't.
http://www.neom.com/si/si_partners.jsp
http://www.neom.com/si/index.jsp
Simulation Vendors Form Group
Eight major developers of simulation software have formed SIM.TECH, the Simulation Software Vendors Association, to provide "Solutions for Understanding and Managing Change." Charter Members are AT&T Istel, AutoSimulations, Deneb Robotics, F&H Simulations, Imagine That, Pritsker, Micro Analysis & Design, and Systems Modeling. All are Regular Members and their representatives will participate on the SIM.TECH Board of Directors. SIM.TECH will operate as a not-for-profit trade association based in Pittsburgh, Pa.
The mission of the association is to expand awareness and use of simulation technology through programs including conference presentations, educational materials, an Internet web site, and work with trade and business publications to communicate to a variety of industries and fields. Simulation models provide statistical estimates of actual system performance. In addition, they provide graphical animations that create greater understanding of system dynamics. Simulation technology allows the design team to actually duplicate and operate the plant or business design within the computer, thereby facilitating exact renditions on how the new or changed system will operate before major investments are made.
SIM.TECH will sponsor business-to-business educational programs that communicate the benefits of member products and services to companies that can benefit from them. Some of the premier users of simulation technology include Alcoa Aluminum, Bethlehem Steel, Boeing Aerospace, Caterpillar, Gates Rubber, Kraft Foods, Microsoft, Proctor & Gamble, and US West.
JP, thanks!
That answers my Quiet Period Question.
November 18, 2004,
SAIC Signs Agreement to Sell Telcordia to Providence Equity and Warburg Pincus
(SAN DIEGO and PISCATAWAY, NJ) - Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) today announced the signing of a definitive agreement to sell its subsidiary Telcordia Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of telecommunications software and services to Providence Equity Partners (Providence) and Warburg Pincus (Warburg) for $1.35 billion in cash. Providence and Warburg are equal equity investors in the transaction. The completion of the sale is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval.
Telcordia, based in Piscataway, N.J., is the leading provider of enabling software for communications networks. The company’s solutions handle the complex tasks required to develop, maintain, monitor and fix today’s carrier networks carrying over 80 percent of U.S. telephony traffic.
“Telcordia consistently has proven itself a leader in the telecommunications industry and a solid contributor to SAIC,” said Kenneth C. Dahlberg, chairman and chief executive officer of SAIC, which purchased the company from the Regional Bell Operating Companies in 1997. “SAIC recognized that a new owner could provide Telcordia with opportunities to expand its global footprint to benefit its customers and the industry as a whole. We look forward to continuing our work with Telcordia as a business partner on both government and commercial opportunities.”
“For the past two years, Telcordia has been transforming itself to help its customers automate their business and improve their bottom line,” said Matt Desch, chief executive officer, Telcordia. “Providence and Warburg, both long-term growth investors in technology, media and telecom companies, have domain expertise and excellent track records in the communications industry. Providence and Warburg have the resources available to enable us to reach our full potential, capitalize on our market-leading intellectual capital and secure a global leadership position.”
“Telcordia is a world leader in creating innovative telecommunications technologies,” said Mark Pelson, managing director of Providence Equity Partners. “We look forward to working with the company to expand its domestic and foreign customer base.”
“With a heritage of providing the critical software that runs the domestic telephony network, Telcordia is exceptionally well positioned in the industry to help telecommunications carriers deploy the new services their consumers want,” said Larry Bettino, managing director of Warburg. “They have the scale, knowledge and experience to integrate these new services while preserving carriers’ investments in legacy systems.”
A global leader in operations support software and network services platforms, Telcordia offers consulting, systems integration, research and development and network planning services. Telcordia helps communications companies mesh complex networks and add new high-speed technology on their existing networks in order for them to be able to sell valuable, high-margin services.
JPMorgan acted as SAIC’s exclusive financial advisor in connection with this transaction and delivered a fairness opinion to its Board of Directors.
About Providence Equity
Providence Equity Partners Inc. is one of the world's leading private investment firms specializing in equity investments in media and communications companies. The principals of Providence Equity manage funds with over $9 billion in equity commitments and have invested in more than 70 companies operating in over 20 countries since the firm's inception in 1991. Current and previous areas of investment include cable television content and distribution, wireless and wireline telephony, publishing, radio and television broadcasting and other media and communications sectors. Significant investments include VoiceStream Wireless, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Music Group, PanAmSat, AT&T Canada, eircom, Casema, Kabel Deutschland, Language Line, F&W Publications, ProSiebenSat.1, and Bresnan Broadband Holdings. The firm has offices in Providence, New York and London. For more information please visit www.provequity.com .
About Warburg Pincus
Warburg Pincus has been a leading private equity investor since 1971. The firm currently has approximately $13 billion under management, including $3 billion available for investment in a range of industries including information and communication technology, financial services, healthcare, LBOs and special situations, media and business services, energy and real estate. Warburg Pincus also has a long history as a leading investor in the information and communication technology sectors, including investments in Avaya, BEA Systems, Bharti Tele-Ventures, Harbour Networks, NeuStar and VERITAS Software. The firm is an experienced partner to entrepreneurs seeking to create and build durable companies with sustainable value and has an active portfolio of about 115 companies spanning the entire spectrum of scale and maturity. For more information please visit www.warburgpincus.com.
About Telcordia Technologies, Inc.
Telcordia Technologies, Inc. is a leading global provider of telecommunications software and services for IP, wireline, wireless and cable. By delivering on its Elementive strategy of providing flexible, standards-based solutions that optimize complex network and business support systems, Telcordia enables customers to aggressively reduce costs and grow revenues. Telcordia is headquartered in Piscataway,N.J, with offices throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, Central and LatinAmerica. For more information please visit www.telcordia.com.
About SAIC
SAIC is the largest employee-owned research and engineering company in the United States, providing information technology, systems integration and eSolutions to commercial and government customers. From science to solutions, SAIC engineers and scientists work to solve complex technical problems in national and homeland security, energy, the environment, space, telecommunications, health care and logistics. More information about SAIC can be found at www.saic.com.
JMO,
Frankly, I'm not interested in how your glass is 1/2 empty.
We all know the downside risk. So, leave it at that. IMO, this forum is for those who see their glass as 1/2 full.
It is the upside potential that is not known. We should focus on that. DD, even speculation is a more productive use of this forum. Discussing what potential competitors are doing is welcome, but complaining about what Neomedia has not done when there is so much to try an uncover about what they have accomplished is a waste of everyone's time.
If you own this stock and you are worried, I sympathize, but I don't want to hear about it. If you are a basher, you are a POS, and I don't expect you will care for my comments.
Gotta love that flow chart.
Collecting from both ends.
Virtu Mobile
www.virtuinc.com
Company Overview
VIRTU MOBILE (VM) is a mobile media company that creates and delivers mobile content for its clients to reach the teen and young adult market segments in the most cost effective manner. VIRTU MOBILE works with consumer brands, advertising agencies and media companies to develop media programs that target the difficult to reach teen and young adult market.
VIRTU MOBILE’s list of product offerings include: Mobile alerts Mobile game development, SMS/text-based marketing programs, Ringtones; Multimedia – pictures and video; Wallpapers, M-Commerce, Scratch & Win coupons, Viral marketing; Voting/polling and Information-on-demand.
In addition to the its product offering, VIRTU MOBILE has an excellent relationship with all carriers and provides the following services: Distribution of SMS, MMS and WAP content, Customization mobile content to ensure rich user experience across all and sets, operating systems and carrier networks and testing and certification of all mobile applications for all handsets, operating systems and carrier networks.
Board Member
Joseph F. Barone, President
Prior to becoming president of VIRTU MOBILE, Barone was managing director of VIRTU Interactive where he developed strategic online marketing programs for Deloitte Consulting, CIGA Group Insurance, NSTL, Inc., Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company and BASF Agricultural Products.
Barone is also an adjunct professor at Drexel University where he teaches two courses in Drexel’s MBA Online Program, e-Commerce Strategy and Marketing and Customer Relationship Management. At St. Joseph’s University, he is also an adjunct professor where he teaches Channels and ePharma in the university’s Pharmaceutical Executive MBA Online Program.
Barone started his career at Procter and Gamble as a sales representative in the New York City area. After two years at P&G, he took a position as a marketing manager at Mrs. Smith’s Pie Company. From Mrs. Smiths, Barone moved to Foote, Cone, and Belding where he rose from account manager to Senior Vice President, Management Supervisor working on such blue chip clients as Marriott Hotel & Resorts, Dixie Cup, Domino Sugar and Tastykake. Before joining VIRTU, Barone was president/managing partner at Gillespie Advertising.
Butterflies.
I had butterflies the other day.
I cured them with a little digging.
IMO, the most important element of a relationship is trust.
Trust has to come without question. If you relate that to NEOM, I guess you have to understand what you own.
Don't tell my wife I said that -- it's a partnership.
JMO
In the Oct. 27, 2004 SAIC Marketing Alliance Announcement, close to the bottom they state:
SAIC is the nation's largest employee-owned research and engineering company, providing information technology, systems integration and eSolutions to commercial and government customers. SAIC engineers and scientists work to solve complex technical problems in national and homeland security, energy, the environment, space, telecommunications, health care, transportation and logistics. With annual revenues of $6.7 billion, SAIC and its subsidiaries, including Telcordia Technologies, have more than 44,000 employees at offices in more than 150 cities worldwide. More information about SAIC can be found on the Internet at www.saic.com.
I believe they pointed to Telecordia for a reason. Why not mention some of SAICs other subsidiaries? I believe it is Telecordia that is building and testing this new platform.
http://www.argreenhouse.com/TelcordiaStandardsCredentials.htm
It's no wonder EPO gave a nod.
I'm a little slow...
but it is getting a little clearer.
I'm am REALLY starting to understand you when you say, "we stand on the shoulders of Giants".
Not a peep.
I don't remember hearing one peep from SAIC other than the formal partnership agreement.
These guys work for governments, it's the way they operate.
Ask yourself this. Does the new linking and switching platform managed by Neom and built by SAIC have any competitors?
:)
Bigger than Google.
Ask yourself this. Why would SAIC partner with NeoMedia?
3rd Generation Cell Phones Make Splash At Cannes
Xposed, February 2004
By
Return to Showcase
Pages / 1 /
LAURENCE FROST
CANNES, France - Trumpeting services like wireless video calls or satellite navigation, mobile phone companies showcased their latest wares on Monday amid hopes the long-awaited shift to "3G" advanced technologies has finally begun.
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A whiff of economic recovery was in the air as tens of thousands of industry professionals flocked to a beach-front conference center in this French Riviera town for the opening of the 3GSM World Congress. Organizers of the four-day show said they had received 35,000 visitor registrations _ almost one-third more than last year.
French mobile operator Orange SA touted its 3G, or "third-generation," networks in a video conference with colleagues hundreds of miles away in the French cities of Lille and Toulouse. The demo featured a prototype of one of the phones Orange plans to bring to market in the next four months in France and Britain.
This "is clearly the year of broadband for our whole industry, and, of course, for the mobile industry," said Orange chairman Thierry Breton, who is also chief executive of its parent company, France Telecom.
But the 3G strategy outlined by Breton also dampened any runaway expectations that the new high-speed data services will go mainstream across Europe anytime soon.
Orange is planning to bring 3G to 10 cities in Britain and 20 in France during 2004, but has no plans to introduce it in its other European markets: Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, Romania, Slovakia and Switzerland.
In France, Breton said Orange hoped to bring the faster networks to a third of the population by the end of the year _ but the rest could have to wait a lot longer. Orange only expects the service to reach 90 percent of French people by 2009.
But even if 3G networks are still some way off for many Europeans, this year's 3GSM show is not short on innovations that will reach them sooner.
On Tuesday, Orange was to announce a partnership with Webraska, a Paris-based wireless service provider, to market phones with satellite navigation in France by the second quarter. The system is also being marketed in Germany by mobile operator O2.
Owners of high-end phones running on Symbian or Microsoft operating systems will be able to buy a GPS satellite navigation unit that communicates the user's whereabouts to the phone via a Bluetooth wireless link while the handset downloads maps for the surrounding area.
"This is a market which is only beginning to wake up now, because the enabling technologies, the phones and the Bluetooth GPS, have only become available in the last few months," said Webraska vice president Jonathan Klinger.
Among U.S. companies on hand, Florida-based NeoMedia Technologies Inc. ran demos of Paperclick, a mobile software that turns a camera phone into a bar-code reader able to check whether the product you are about to buy is overpriced.
The software goes online to download instant price comparisons to show you how much more cheaply you could find the same article in another store or online.
But retailers can breath easy _ for the moment at least: NeoMedia said it had signed marketing deals with European partners only last month and did not give a definite launch date.
Where will you find Microsoft, Nokia, Symbian, Palm and Intel all in sleeping bags together?
by Guy Kewney / posted on 07 September 2004
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And would you like a free Segway Human Transporter with that? The answer is: The Orange Code Camp. No, you probably haven't heard about it before ...
Orange organised it. "Orange has announced that some of the biggest names in the mobile industry are due to appear at Orange Code Camp - a three-day event designed to help the developer community create new applications for both present and next generation mobiles," announced the mobile operator.
The full list of participants starts with the main sponsor, Nokia, and then, in no discernible order, includes: Intel, Symbian, Palmsource, Microsoft, Sybase & Sony Ericsson - all heading off to Poitiers, in France "to present and workshop with developers at Orange Code Camp."
Orange Code Camp has been designed for members of the Orange Partner programme.
The aim is: "to stimulate the creation of new and exciting applications for a variety of different mobile phone operating systems," says Orange.
As IT conventions go, this one seems unconventional. Hotel? Forget it! "The 250 developers will be camping at the event - which takes place between 13th and 15th September at Futuroscope, Poitiers, France. Each attendee will be provided with a sleeping bag, a wash kit and 24 hour access to Orange and industry developer personnel."
Many of those applications will then be available for Orange customers to purchase for use on their mobile phone, says Orange. The applications include such ideas as dynamic tube maps, games, mobile office programmes and even location based services.
Orange has even set up a next generation (3G) laboratory on the site, which will enable developers to test their applications within a controlled, third-generation network environment.
Sanjiv Ahuja, CEO of Orange, will open the event and give a keynote speech.
As well as a unique networking opportunity, the event will allow developers to:
* Actively code, build and customise applications for possible commercialisation through Orange
* Learn about and fully understand Orange mobile application requirements and the various routes-to-market
* Become familiar with development, testing certification and validation requirements from Orange and the various Operating Systems
* Physically test applications against devices across the Orange 2G and 3G networks
((Yes, yes, but the Segway?)
"Nokia, in conjunction with Orange, is launching its Symbian OS/Series 60 Developer Challenge at the event. The challenge will run for six months and tasks the developer community with creating exciting applications specifically for use on the Nokia 6630, the Series 60 GPRS/WCDMA/EDGE smartphone. The ultimate prize is the chance for the application to be commercialised over the Orange network."
Nice, but not as cool as a Segway, is it?
"Nokia's Java Challenge - which was launched at Java One in San Francisco earlier in the summer - will also have a presence at the event, with Nokia and Orange working with the shortlisted developers to enhance and further develop their applications."
No Segway there, then?
"The PalmSource developer contest also reaches its climax at the event, with the company offering the first prize of a Segway Human Transporter for the developer who creates the most compelling Palm OS wireless application."
Aha! Much better than six months with a chance of selling some!
And Sony Ericsson will also be giving away 50 K700i camera phones in a sweepstake at the event.
Richard Hanscott, Vice President Business Development and Partnerships, said: "The mobile industry is evolving and our customers are demanding more services than ever before. This is happening at a time when our portfolio or powerful phones is growing and the capabilities of our networks are expanding. All of this means that the time is now right to engage with the developer community and deliver our customers more advanced and exciting - and above all, beneficial - services."
"Orange Code Camp has been created to do just that. It is designed to energise the developer community through an engaging, informal and productive series of presentations and networking opportunities which in turn will stimulate the development of exciting and innovative applications and services for our customers from members of the Orange Partner programme."
Hanscott added: "Innovation comes through freedom of thought and freedom of creativity. With Orange Code Camp, we will be creating just that environment of freedom, giving developers the tools, encouragement and access that will enable them to explore, create and innovate."
Tickets for Orange Code Camp have now sold out. However, future Orange Code Camps are expected to take place in America, Europe and Asia over the next year. For more information on future Orange Code Camp events and to learn more about developing applications for Orange, visit www.developers.orange.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Symbian, Microsoft 'Exchange' License For Smartphone Synchronization March 22, 2005
Mobile phone OS specialist Symbian Ltd. has licensed software from rival Microsoft Corp. that would allow it to develop an Exchange Server ActiveSync protocol plug-in messaging architecture for use in the latest Symbian operating system.
By John Walko
EE Times
LONDON — Mobile phone OS specialist Symbian Ltd. has licensed software from rival Microsoft Corp. that would allow it to develop an Exchange Server ActiveSync protocol plug-in messaging architecture for use in the latest Symbian operating system.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The agreement allows Symbian's licensees, which include most leading mobile phone makers, to implement direct synchronization capabilities with Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 in their Symbian OS products.
Nokia, a major shareholder in Symbian together with companies such as Samsung, Siemens and SonyEricsson, announced a similar deal with Microsoft last month at the 3GSM show in Cannes, France, for the delivery of music and e-mails on its handsets.
The companies said the deal indicates how leading companies in the mobile phone and IT industries can collaborate to bring applications to the wireless market that meet the needs of network operators, enterprises and consumers.
Symbian already supports a wide range of e-mail and personal information management (PIM) synchronization protocols such as RIM's BlackBerry Connect as well as the Open Mobile Alliance Data Synchronization protocol.
The plug-in "will help all Symbian OS licensees meet the needs of the enterprise market," said Marit Doving, Sybian's executive vice president for marketing, said in a statement.
Dave Thompson, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Exchange Server Product Group, said the group's goal "is to enhance end-user productivity and drive innovation in the mobile industry with an easy-to-implement, wireless e-mail solution designed to lower IT costs."
OT: In4.
These folks out class me and have helped me maintain my cool. I'm just trying to connect the dots and convince myself I am not too invested.
The risk reward ratio seems to be in our favor. I was just feeling a little low and needed a pick-me-up. Looks like I found some - It's called Ihub.
I can't wait, one way or another what SAIC will bring to the table.
Hey, we all do what we can - except dem low life bashers. Looks like they got bored for now.
I can here it now... oooooh noooooo iiitttsss .52
did i speak to soon?
Thanks JP...
I really needed that today.
Wifes calling - got to go.
Forgive Me.
Fort Myers software company switches gears into paint business
NeoMedia officials say this new venture will help raise the money needed to market a new Internet product which links physical objects to the Internet
By LAURA LAYDEN, lllayden@naplesnews.com
August 12, 2004
NeoMedia Technologies Inc. had a one-track mind.
But not anymore.
The Fort Myers-based software development company has dipped its feet into the paint business.
While it may seem like a stretch for NeoMedia, company officials say this new venture will help raise the money needed to market its original product called "PaperClick," which links physical objects to the Internet. Using the technology, a bar code on a can of soda can be scanned with a special pen and then used to pull up the beverage maker's Web site, for example.
NeoMedia has worked to perfect and market the Internet technology since the company was founded in 1989.
But bringing the technology to market has been slow going.
"We have the patents," said Charles Jensen, the company's president, chief operating officer and acting chief executive officer. "We have the software. We are not penetrating the market."
That means it's tough to make money to pay for operations.
Enter the paint business.
On Feb. 6, NeoMedia acquired 13-year-old CSI International Inc. in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. CSI developed its own Micro Paint Repair System for fixing small scratches and chips on automobiles finishes.
NeoMedia hopes to take the "pioneering" technology nationwide. The company's proprietary system is billed as a quicker and less expensive way to make paint repairs.
When the acquisition of CSI was completed earlier this year, Jensen called it "a great day and the beginning of an exciting chapter for NeoMedia and our shareholders."
In the deal, NeoMedia, a publicly traded company, exchanged 7 million shares of its stock and $2.5 million cash for all of the outstanding shares in CSI, a private company.
NeoMedia's investment has already begun to reap rewards.
— On June 1, NeoMedia announced that it had signed a distribution agreement with Micro Paint Systems (Australasia) Limited of New Zealand. The agreement is for exclusive distribution rights to NeoMedia's paint repair products in Australia and New Zealand, contingent on a minimum purchase of 500 systems over five years, which would generate approximately $23 million in revenue to NeoMedia.
— On Aug. 2, NeoMedia announced that it had signed an agreement with MDA Co-Auto Ltd., a large buying consortium for new car franchised dealers in Western Canada, that could generate more than $2 million for NeoMedia. MDA wants to sell the micro paint products and system to its member dealers, who could then make quick repairs on new cars damaged in transport.
NeoMedia is marketing the repair products and system to many types of businesses, including body and repair shops, auto glass specialists and auto parts stores. Company officials say they can see entrepreneurs building businesses around the system because it's so effective and innovative.
Repairs can be made in less than an hour, using a chemical adhesion that makes the repairs permanent, Jensen said. This is a technology "that no one else in the world has," he said.
The repair system does not use isocyanates that are harmful to the environment, Jensen said. That means repairs don't have to be done in paint booths with huge exhaust fans and workers applying the product don't have to wear special breathing equipment. "That's why it's awesome — and it's so fast," he said.
Jensen said the base paint for the product comes from DuPont. He said a color-coded system is used to match the paint on vehicles exactly. But he'll say little else.
"It's a secret formula," he said. "It's like Coca-Cola has a secret formula. We have it locked in a safe in a lawyer's office in Calgary and only two people know what it is."
NeoMedia has created a new company to market the repair system. It's called NeoMedia Micro Paint Repair Inc. and it operates as a subsidiary of its parent company in Calgary. Stanton Hill, CSI's former CEO, is in charge of the day-to-day operations in Canada.
In Fort Myers, Art Gilfus serves as vice president of global sales for NeoMedia's new micro paint company. He joined the company about a month ago after seeing how the repair technology worked for himself.
"I went and saw it and I said, 'Wow this is cool. We can sell this I'm sure,'" Gilfus said.
He said he scratched initials on the side of a car with screwdriver and then watched in amazement as it was repaired in about 35 minutes. He said the repair was flawless and that using traditional ways to repair it would have taken several hours.
"Repairs can be done at a lower total cost because they don't take as long," Gilfus said. "We have the potential to change the landscape of how vehicles with paint damage are repaired and that is really not an understatement."
NeoMedia plans to open a corporate-owned micro paint retail center in Fort Myers. It will serve as a base for U.S. sales and training. Demonstrations will be conducted at the center, and it will eventually serve local customers in need of repairs.
A similar center is located in Canada.
NeoMedia hopes to sign licensing agreements with business owners across the country. They would be buying the rights to use the products, the training and all the product ingredients, Gilfus explained.
If all goes as planned, Jensen said NeoMedia should come out a much stronger company. He hopes to see the company's PaperClick technology take off soon.
With the introduction of cell phones that can take pictures, he thinks NeoMedia will finally get the break it needs for PaperClick.
The company is hoping to reach agreements with telecommunications giants, such as Verizon and Sprint, to incorporate the technology in camera phones. With the technology, customers could take a picture of a bar code on a product and then be linked directly to a Web site with more information, for example.
Earlier this year, NeoMedia entered into an agreement with London-based iCoupon Ltd. to develop a state-of-the-art electronic coupon program for consumers in Europe. Once a coupon is delivered electronically to the camera phone's screen, the consumer will be able to bring the phone to a retailer, where it can be scanned through a bar code reader.
Jensen said the mobile phone companies are excited about NeoMedia's technology. But it can take anywhere from 12 to 18 months for them to introduce a new product.
Also, NeoMedia has to sell its PaperClick technology to what Jensen calls "brand managers," those companies that control the name for such products as Coca-Cola and Pepsi. He said the ones he's talked to are excited about the prospects.
"They are ready to do it now," he said. "They love it."
NeoMedia trades on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board under the symbol NEOM. It's shares closed down slightly Wednesday at 7 cents a share
I need a pick-me-up...
http://www.mmoom.com/archives/002633.htm
Just keep telling yourself...
we own the bridge... we own the bridge...
Simon doesn't look too please about it.
It works for me.
What Quiet Period?