• bionicjoey
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    1 year ago

    Their novel discovery: They figured out nobody had patented this yet

    • PrefersAwkward@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I think this would make it tough to enforce the patent if it’s actually commonly used. If I were somehow granted a patent on tap dancing, its common usage by others before me would probably cause my patent to be invalidated if I then tried to sue a tap dancer.

      Not a patent lawyer, but IIRC, US patent law had some protections for things (including non-patented) that are already common practice.

      EDIT: Clarity

      • bionicjoey
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        1 year ago

        Software patents get away with stupid shit like this all the time. Patent trolls claim they invented a software pattern and then sue everyone who uses it.