Walkman 'inventor' ponders iPod action

[ZOXXO]

Originally posted by: AndrewR

Originally posted by: jumpr
The iPod was a revolutionary idea that changed the music world forever and spawned a thousand imitators. It's completely unrelated to the Walkman. There's no way Apple owes this guy money. Absolutely no way.

Revolutionary? Hardly. I had an MP3 player long before the iPod came along. Evolutionary, yes, but not revolutionary. Apple is very good at marketing and style, and they always have been.

The fact so many think the IPOD was the first is a testament to their marketing savvy.

 

[RagingBITCH]

Originally posted by: ZOXXO

Originally posted by: AndrewR

Originally posted by: jumpr
The iPod was a revolutionary idea that changed the music world forever and spawned a thousand imitators. It's completely unrelated to the Walkman. There's no way Apple owes this guy money. Absolutely no way.

Revolutionary? Hardly. I had an MP3 player long before the iPod came along. Evolutionary, yes, but not revolutionary. Apple is very good at marketing and style, and they always have been.

The fact so many think the IPOD was the first is a testament to their marketing savvy.

Only a fvcking idiot thinks the iPod is the first MP3 player. It's the FIRST ONE that comes to mind if you mentioned MP3 players, but I don't know of a single person who thinks it's the first ever MP3 player.

 

[BatmanNate]

What a parasite. I suppose the decendents of the inventor of the wheel should chase down Ford next...

 

[nakedfrog]

So: all Apple has to do is include a notice that says "It is not recommended to operate this device while it is clipped onto your belt or in your handbag" and just slip it into the EULA.

 

[TwiceOver]

That's an awefully broad patent. I should patent "The use of two organic devices that allow movement over most terrain". Everyone would owe me royalties.

 

[Kev]

Originally posted by: digitalsm

Originally posted by: Bootprint

Originally posted by: Bootprint
Another link, how long would his patent last?

Hmm, from reading the article it sounds like the patent should be dead by now. Normal patents have a 20 year life span, his patent was in 1978.

Ack, I wanted edit not reply.

Patents granted before 1995 only lasted 17 years IIRC, this guys a decade late. Im suprised Sony settled.

probably because the case was opened before it expired

 

[EvilYoda]

I hate to see people that do this...I'm hoping he goes broke with court costs if he decides to take it to Apple

 

[benliong]

I don't know the specifics of why sony paid him, but they shouldn't have IMHO. He came up with the idea, big deal. His effort of putting his idea into market failed, and he didn't try to sell the idea to someone who could, that's his problem. Sony decided to make a crack at the idea 2 years later and won.

I really think there should be different patent periods for different industry. Maybe longer for drugs but shorter for electronics, especially ideas behind appliances.

--Ben

 

[RedRooster]

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH

Originally posted by: ZOXXO

Originally posted by: AndrewR

Originally posted by: jumpr
The iPod was a revolutionary idea that changed the music world forever and spawned a thousand imitators. It's completely unrelated to the Walkman. There's no way Apple owes this guy money. Absolutely no way.

Revolutionary? Hardly. I had an MP3 player long before the iPod came along. Evolutionary, yes, but not revolutionary. Apple is very good at marketing and style, and they always have been.

The fact so many think the IPOD was the first is a testament to their marketing savvy.

Only a fvcking idiot thinks the iPod is the first MP3 player. It's the FIRST ONE that comes to mind if you mentioned MP3 players, but I don't know of a single person who thinks it's the first ever MP3 player.

You'd be surprised.

 

[djheater]

Originally posted by: RedRooster

Originally posted by: RagingBITCH

Originally posted by: ZOXXO

Originally posted by: AndrewR

Originally posted by: jumpr
The iPod was a revolutionary idea that changed the music world forever and spawned a thousand imitators. It's completely unrelated to the Walkman. There's no way Apple owes this guy money. Absolutely no way.

Revolutionary? Hardly. I had an MP3 player long before the iPod came along. Evolutionary, yes, but not revolutionary. Apple is very good at marketing and style, and they always have been.

The fact so many think the IPOD was the first is a testament to their marketing savvy.

Only a fvcking idiot thinks the iPod is the first MP3 player. It's the FIRST ONE that comes to mind if you mentioned MP3 players, but I don't know of a single person who thinks it's the first ever MP3 player.

You'd be surprised.

The very first MP3 player is still listed on Amazon. (At least the first to be nationally distributed in the US... Those crazy Japs probably had one for years....)

Rio PMP 300 MP3 Player

 

[So]

:thumbsdown:

 

[djheater]

Originally posted by: The Amazon Description
Welcome to the future of personal audio. The tiny Diamond Rio player plays MP3-encoded digital music, the open Internet standard that's shaking up the industry. It stores your music files in 32 MB of RAM instead of on CD or tape, so it has no moving parts and it can't skip.

About the size of a deck of cards, the Diamond Rio player weighs under three ounces and can store up to an hour's worth of music files encoded at 64 Kbps or half an hour's worth of files at 128 Kbps. The supplied Windows software and PC connector cable let you upload new selections, delete old ones, change the playback order, and even create new MP3 files from your own CDs.

yeck... it's even better to read the reviews from 99

 

[Goosemaster]

Originally posted by: AndrewR

Originally posted by: jumpr
The iPod was a revolutionary idea that changed the music world forever and spawned a thousand imitators. It's completely unrelated to the Walkman. There's no way Apple owes this guy money. Absolutely no way.

Revolutionary? Hardly. I had an MP3 player long before the iPod came along. Evolutionary, yes, but not revolutionary. Apple is very good at marketing and style, and they always have been.

DICTIONARY

Marked by or resulting in radical change

The IPOD IMO is responsible for introducing the idea of portable digital music to the massses and the fashion freaks. No one can honestly say that it was the first , but it was indeed the most socially acceptable.

EDIT: I suck at the typing.....

 

[brtspears2]

In the two cases he lost, he lost it all...

Apparently he lost 1.7million pounds trying to sue sony and his assets were seized. I guess he wants to sue Apple to recover his losses. Of course there are other "stereobelts" out there, why not go after them?

 

[PingSpike]

Originally posted by: jumpr

Originally posted by: digitalsm

Originally posted by: Koing
What happens when a patent runs out? Free game for everyone else?

Koing

Yes, thats why drug companies fight tooth and nail to get congress to extend patents for the drugs they develop. They say they do it trying to recover R&D, but infact it just allows them to gouge and reap massive profits. Congress really should stop allowing it.

And it's also why Paxil suddenly becomes "Paxil CR (Controlled Release)" - there's some fancy new 'feature' added to the drug, and the patent can be extended because the product was updated. I think that's how it works.

Couldn't generics still be made of the original paxil formula, which probably works almost the same?

Perscription drugs are a joke in this country.

 

[Ameesh]

Originally posted by: jumpr
The iPod was a revolutionary idea that changed the music world forever and spawned a thousand imitators. It's completely unrelated to the Walkman. There's no way Apple owes this guy money. Absolutely no way.

there were other portable mp3 players before the ipod....

 

[preslove]

Originally posted by: PingSpike

Originally posted by: jumpr

Originally posted by: digitalsm

Originally posted by: Koing
What happens when a patent runs out? Free game for everyone else?

Koing

Yes, thats why drug companies fight tooth and nail to get congress to extend patents for the drugs they develop. They say they do it trying to recover R&D, but infact it just allows them to gouge and reap massive profits. Congress really should stop allowing it.

And it's also why Paxil suddenly becomes "Paxil CR (Controlled Release)" - there's some fancy new 'feature' added to the drug, and the patent can be extended because the product was updated. I think that's how it works.

Couldn't generics still be made of the original paxil formula, which probably works almost the same?

Perscription drugs are a joke in this country.

This is why the large drug companies spend more money on marketing and administration than research. They send drug reps all over to doctors, give them free lunches, vacations in the form of "conferences," on top of free drug samples to give to patients. The doctor gives the patient the free sample and a prescription for that drug, and the patient/insurance company is screwed. It's a total fvcking racket.

 

[kaizersose]

i am going to file a patent for "faster computers". then anyone who builds a faster computer will have to pay me.

 

[maziwanka]

wait. if he received a hefty settlement from sony, what's he chasing apple for? it'll be a waste of his time and money.....

 

[AndrewR]

The IPOD IMO is responsible for introducing the idea of portable digital music to the massses and the fashion freaks. No one can honestly deny that it was the first , but it was indeed the most socially acceptable.

The idea of portable digital music was introduced with the CD player and the MD player, both of which use digital technology. As referenced above, the first MP3 player was the Rio (had one of those, good little thing), and all other EVOLVED (see original post) from that one. The iPod merely built on the history of those and added the ability to carry much more than a single album and added a sleek case.

Again, Apple designs and markets well, but it won't last. The iPod's dominance will end soon enough since it's just too damn expensive.

 

[CptObvious]

Don't patents expire after 20 years? His 'stereobelt' idea should be in the public domain by now

 

[Goosemaster]

Originally posted by: AndrewR

The IPOD IMO is responsible for introducing the idea of portable digital music to the massses and the fashion freaks. No one can honestly deny that it was the first , but it was indeed the most socially acceptable.

The idea of portable digital music was introduced with the CD player and the MD player, both of which use digital technology. As referenced above, the first MP3 player was the Rio (had one of those, good little thing), and all other EVOLVED (see original post) from that one. The iPod merely built on the history of those and added the ability to carry much more than a single album and added a sleek case.

Again, Apple designs and markets well, but it won't last. The iPod's dominance will end soon enough since it's just too damn expensive.

My bad...I "suck at the typing" I meant "No one can honestly say that it was the first"

I have a minidisc as well. Strong little mofo.

 

[0roo0roo]

what f*ckheads work in these patent offices these days anyhow?

seriously... can a patent be revoked? this should be.

i just know einstein was once a patent clerk. i guess things have gone down hill

 

[Schadenfroh]

isnt their like a secret society that kills off people that try to invoke patents on popular gadgets, didnt they kill the guy that tried to take action on hyperlinks?

 

[TerryMathews]

Originally posted by: djheater

Originally posted by: The Amazon Description
Welcome to the future of personal audio. The tiny Diamond Rio player plays MP3-encoded digital music, the open Internet standard that's shaking up the industry. It stores your music files in 32 MB of RAM instead of on CD or tape, so it has no moving parts and it can't skip.

About the size of a deck of cards, the Diamond Rio player weighs under three ounces and can store up to an hour's worth of music files encoded at 64 Kbps or half an hour's worth of files at 128 Kbps. The supplied Windows software and PC connector cable let you upload new selections, delete old ones, change the playback order, and even create new MP3 files from your own CDs.

yeck... it's even better to read the reviews from 99

The PMP300 was a good player - I owned one. It was honestly a better player than the PMP500 I replaced it with. I've got a friend that uses it while cross country training to this day.

The reviews don't mention that you could add up to a 128MB SM card and the device would use both it and the 32MB for storage.