The bottom line is that this drama has two plots: A) The Bb vs. D2L federal lawsuit that is now based on a patent that has been invalidated (non-final, of course), and B) Bb vs. the U.S. Patent Office patent invalidation process and lawsuit. (Talk about biting the hand that feeds you!)
...and all this will take a very long time - and a lot of money - to resolve.
As I commented on Michael's post above, I have a few lingering questions in all of this:
1) How long can Bb attempt to put D2L out of business, especially considering D2L’s viability as a competitor was used to support Bb’s case when acquiring WebCT? At what point does the Dept. of Justice enter the picture?
2) How can the USPTO issue a second patent to Blackboard that is very very similar to the original one that the USPTO has now invalidated?
3) For how long will Blackboard customers accept Bb’s litigious nature? When will their customers see the effects of the costs associated with Bb’s lawsuits?
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Thanks to stuartpilbrow for the apropos image.
1 comment:
Looks like Bb has frozen all salaries, and cut 401k matching as well... maybe spending too much $$$ on frivolous litigation?
http://www.corporate-ir.net/seccapsule/seccapsule.asp?m=f&c=177018&fid=6279763&dc=
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