The End of a Patent Dynasty, IBM has been Dethroned

IBM is no longer King of the Patent World! 
Samsung now reigns supreme.

US Patents for 2016 by Fortune by IFI Claims Patent Services. IBM #1 with 8,052 patents issued. Samsung Electronics Co Lmt with 5,518. But, a better measure would have IBM coming in second in 2016, and even in 2015!... 

The other approach that consolidates related companies here, or more directly from Sqoop here.   IBM #2 when Samsung has more patents collectively with 8,551 issued in 2016.
In terms of patent applications, 

In terms of patent applications, Samsung really beats out IBM:

• Samsung -- 10,695
• International Business Machines Corporation -- 8,800

Samsung is way ahead of #2 Microsoft in Design Patents with ~1,500 vs. ~500. IBM is not in to the top 40 in terms of US design patents (as would be expected for the type of products (services, really) that they produce.

Wow, no 25 year run for IBM. A questionable 24 year run through 2016. And arguably, not even a 23 year.

IBM Seeks Patent on Software that Incorporates Human Emotion

IBM Seeks Patent on Software that Incorporates Human Emotion - IPWatchdog.com | Patents & Patent Law:

IBM patents emotions. How does that make your feel? Sad? Mad? Glad?

Well, let's not get emotional about this.

But it seems that our friends at IBM, the patent King, has a rather cleaver line on patents. IBM is making efforts to emulate the types of things done by the human emotions. Multiple channels, multiple inputs.

One would assume the same illogical and irrational things that make humans so unique and yet so imperfect. Right.

Steve Brachmann does a nice job of tying in other patent technologies related to communications and information processing that are in the same space.

I like the comment: "It looks like more than a full time job for IBM just keeping track of who is potentially infringing their patents."

True that. But having 10 patents issued per day give IBM a whole lot of leeway if someone comes after IBM.

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Tiny movie: IBM makes nano-sized film about little boy by pushing molecules around (with video)

Tiny movie: IBM makes nano-sized film about little boy by pushing molecules around (with video):

This is too cool...

IBMers have too much time on their hands when they have time to push atoms around and make a stop-motion video of it.

Kinda makes you wonder on the possible BIG applications of something so very small! ???

A boy and his atom. 

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IBM and China. #1 in the world of Patents

IBM is again the patent king with the most patents issued. Now just under 6,500 issued in a single year. That's issued, not applications.


IBM

•Celebrated 101 years since its first patent

•In 2012 was its 20th year as most US patents

•In 2012 received 6,478 patents! (not applications!)

•Spent $6B on R&D  … roughly $1m per patent.

•IBM makes $1B+ per year on IP sales/licensing!
=> That is almost pure profit$!

This is a fun article about the big patent companies and IBM's Watson system beating out the best and the brightest on the show Jeopardy. 

In the meanwhile, China has moved up to the busiest patent office in the world! It was only a couple years ago that they were 5th and not long prior to that they they were not a signatory on IP treaties!..

AP: Yahoo, Facebook strike patent truce, ad alliance

The Associated Press: Yahoo, Facebook strike patent truce, ad alliance:
"Yahoo's legal assault had exposed Facebook's vulnerability to patent claims as it prepared to complete the biggest initial public offering of stock by an Internet company."

So Facebook had to go out and build its own war chest of patents: 750 here, 650 there. Now the law suit goes away and everybody's making nice.

"Facebook insulated itself by buying 750 patents from IBM Corp. for an undisclosed amount and spending $550 million to acquire another 650 patents that one of its biggest shareholders, Microsoft Corp., had purchased from AOL Inc. Armed with its own arsenal of intellectual property, Facebook signaled that it wasn't backing down and filed its own patent infringement lawsuit against Yahoo in April." That's 1400 patents from IBM and AOL (via MSFT).

For those people who used to think that anyone could duplicate Facebook; that's going to now require some rethinking. Plus, if everyone you know (and a whole lot of "friends" who you don't really know) are on Facebook, there's really no easy way to switch. Unless, of course, you have become tired of your old friends and you wanna start over by looking for new ones:-)

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