It seems there is more patent "bushwacking" going on in the US
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070104-8551.htmlVideo on demand pioneer Intertainer flamed out back in 2002, but not before filing a broad patent for "managing, distributing, and/or retailing digital media assets." That patent was granted in 2005, and the remnants of Intertainer (one co-founder and a secretary) have now launched a patent infringement lawsuit against three Internet heavyweights—Apple, Google, and Napster. And if the suit is successful, more litigation will follow.
The lawsuit was filed on December 29, 2006, in the Eastern District of Texas.
The company is no stranger to lawsuits. It sued the industry-backed movie download service Movielink in 2002, claiming that the movie studios were engaged in price-fixing that was designed to put Intertainer out of business. That suit was finally settle out of court early in 2006, and settlement details were not disclosed. Intertainer now appears to be asserting that its patent covers the most basic mechanisms of online media delivery and that it deserves compensation.
It does seem a shame that there is no clause in the US patent system as there is in the UK one about "protecting your patent", many of theses claims could and should have been made when they first suspected that they had a claim, instead it seems fashionable to lie in wait of a fat cat before launching a claim.
