蘋(píng)果與安卓陷入專利消耗戰(zhàn)
????近日,美國(guó)國(guó)際貿(mào)易委員會(huì)(U.S. International Trade Commission)作出裁決,臺(tái)灣手機(jī)廠商宏達(dá)電(HTC)侵犯了蘋(píng)果公司(Apple)的一項(xiàng)軟件專利。利用這項(xiàng)技術(shù),用戶可以通過(guò)點(diǎn)擊內(nèi)嵌在電子郵件中的電話號(hào)碼,直接完成撥號(hào)操作。裁決一出,宏達(dá)電發(fā)表聲明說(shuō),這對(duì)于它而言實(shí)際上“是場(chǎng)勝利”。而業(yè)內(nèi)諸多評(píng)論人士對(duì)此聲明亦缺乏深入的理解。宏達(dá)電還表示,上述功能不過(guò)是蘋(píng)果公司斷言屬于它的10項(xiàng)專利之一。而且,搭載谷歌安卓系統(tǒng)的宏達(dá)電手機(jī)已經(jīng)找到了移除該特性的辦法。 ????現(xiàn)在看來(lái),出于同樣的原因,摩托羅拉公司(Motorola)很可能也得在其手機(jī)上放棄一個(gè)功能。利用該功能,用戶可在智能手機(jī)圖片庫(kù)中隨意瀏覽翻頁(yè),或者直接點(diǎn)擊放大其中的某一頁(yè)。美國(guó)專利博客網(wǎng)站FOSS Patents的弗洛里恩?穆勒表示,慕尼黑的一家法院很可能將于本周二(今天)做出裁決,摩托羅拉的安卓手機(jī)也侵犯了蘋(píng)果公司的這項(xiàng)專利。今年8月,荷蘭一家法院已經(jīng)裁定另一家安卓手機(jī)廠商三星公司(Samsung)放棄這項(xiàng)特性。 ????無(wú)論在上述哪個(gè)案例中,蘋(píng)果都未能置對(duì)手于死地。但是,穆勒稱,在這場(chǎng)消耗戰(zhàn)中,蘋(píng)果在不斷向前推進(jìn),而安卓手機(jī)廠商每次都被迫修改一項(xiàng)智能手機(jī)特性,以避免侵犯蘋(píng)果的原創(chuàng)設(shè)計(jì)。穆勒還接著說(shuō),這一切正是史蒂夫?喬布斯一直希望看到的。 ????“盡管一兩次此類勝利尚不足以改變消費(fèi)者的使用偏好,”穆勒寫(xiě)道,“但是,如果能夠鞏固6項(xiàng)甚至更多這類專利的所有權(quán),最終累加的效果就會(huì)對(duì)用戶體驗(yàn)產(chǎn)生可觀的影響。” ????穆勒說(shuō),蘋(píng)果是在為長(zhǎng)遠(yuǎn)的發(fā)展機(jī)遇而戰(zhàn)。 ????“只要沒(méi)有巨大的壓力,蘋(píng)果完全有時(shí)間逐個(gè)擊破,一個(gè)國(guó)家一個(gè)國(guó)家地推進(jìn)。在這種此消彼長(zhǎng)的競(jìng)爭(zhēng)中,穩(wěn)扎穩(wěn)扎遠(yuǎn)比畢其功于一役來(lái)得重要。” ????譯者:大海 |
????Many commentators took at face value HTC's declaration of "an actual victory" after the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled that it had infringed Apple's (AAPL) patent on software that allowed a user to dial a number embedded in an e-mail simply by clicking on it. That particular feature was only one of 10 patents Apple had tried to assert, HTC argued, and the Taiwanese manufacturer of Google (GOOG) Android phones had already found a way to remove it. ????Now it looks like Motorola (MOT) may have to do something similar about Apple's patented method of flipping through pages in a smartphone photo gallery and zooming in on a particular image. According to FOSS Patents' Florian Mueller, a court in Munich is likely to rule in February that Motorola's Android phones infringe this patent as well. Another Android phone manufacturer -- Samsung -- was already forced to drop the feature by a Dutch court's injunction in August. ????Neither case constitutes a knockout blow for Apple, but Mueller argues that the company is making headway in a war of attrition in which Android manufacturers have to modify their smartphones one feature at a time to work around Apple's original ideas -- which, he says, is what Steve Jobs wanted all along. ????"While one or two wins of this kind won't be enough to change consumer preferences," Mueller writes, "the aggregate effect of the enforcement of half a dozen or more patents of this kind could make an appreciable difference in user experience." ????Apple, he says, is fighting for long-term opportunities. ????"As long as it doesn't come under enormous pressure, it can afford to crack one nut at a time, country by country. In this you-win-some-you-lose-some game, a substantial drop-out rate is less important than steady progress." |
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