CNET NEWS — July 7 — Troubled Friendster has been awarded a broad patent covering social networking that could cover activities of rival sites. The U.S. patent, which was awarded June 27, is extremely general, and would seem to cover the activities of many other sites, especially those like LinkedIn that allow people to connect within a certain number of degrees of separation. Asked whether Friendster would sue, President Kent Lindstrom said "It’s way too early to say…We’ll do what we can to protect our intellectual property." FULL ARTICLE @ CNET NEWS
Mark Brooks: Founder Jonathan Abrams applied for this patent early on.
This may set a dangerous precedence. Yet another example of why our patent system needs to be reformed.
I’m not a patent attorney, but it is my understanding that something that has been “invented” for a year by others cannot be patented.