Apple ordered to pay $533 million for patent infringement

A federal jury in Texas found that its iTunes software infringed three patents owned by patent licensing firm Smartflash.

Apple Inc has been ordered to pay $532.9 million after a federal jury in Texas found that its iTunes software infringed three patents owned by patent licensing firm Smartflash LLC.

Though Smartflash had been asking for $852 million in damages, Tuesday night’s verdict was still a blow to Apple.

The jury, which deliberated for eight hours, determined Apple had not only used Smartflash’s patents without permission, but did so willfully.

Apple, which said it would appeal, said the outcome was another reason reform was needed in the patent system to curb litigation by companies that don’t make products themselves.

“We refused to pay off this company for the ideas our employees spent years innovating and unfortunately we have been left with no choice but to take this fight up through the court system,” Apple said in a statement.

Smartflash sued Apple in May 2013, alleging its iTunes software infringed its patents related to accessing and storing downloaded songs, videos and games.

“Smartflash is very happy with the jury’s verdict, which recognizes Apple’s longstanding willful infringement,” Brad Caldwell, a lawyer for Smartflash, said in an email.

The trial was held in Tyler, which over the past decade has become a focus for patent litigation.
Smartflash’s registered office is also in Tyler.

It was also in Tyler federal court that a jury in 2012 ordered Apple to pay $368 million to VirnetX Inc for patent infringement. A federal appeals court later threw out that damages figure, saying it was wrongly calculated.

Apple tried to avoid a trial by having the lawsuit thrown out. But U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, who presided over the case, ruled earlier this month that Smartflash’s technology was not too basic to deserve the patents.

Apple had asked the jury to find Smartflash’s patents invalid because previously patented inventions covered the same technology.

Smartflash’s suit said that around 2000, the co-inventor of its patents, Patrick Racz, had met with executives of what is now European SIM card maker Gemalto SA, including Augustin Farrugia, who is now a senior director at Apple.

Smartflash has also filed patent infringement lawsuits against Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, HTC Corp and Google Inc.

The case is Smartflash LLC, et al v. Apple, Inc, et al, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, No. 13-cv-447.

Maratha Mandir brings down curtains on DDLJ after 20 years

The romantic moments between actors Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, portrayal of a strict father, revelry around Indian wedding and a fun train journey in "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge" (DDLJ) will be missed by moviegoers as the iconic movie made its final curtain call Thursday at famous Maratha Mandir here - after two decades.

Manoj Desai, owner of G7 Multiples and Gaiety Galaxy and the managing director of Maratha Mandir told IANS: "Yes, it's true that we have pulled down the show. Today (Thursday) morning show was the last show of DDLJ at Maratha Mandir."

"The morning show which was the last show of DDLJ had an audience of 210," he added.
The film, which won 10 Filmfare Awards, including best film, best actor, best actress and best director at the 1996 edition of the ceremony, had been running uninterrupted at this single-theatre cinema hall at its usual playing time slot of 11:30 am.

The film, which was first screened at Maratha Mandir in October 1995, was undergoing its 20th year of uninterrupted run at the iconic cinema hall. It also holds the record of the longest running film in the history of Indian cinema.

When asked about the reason behind closing of the shows of the film, he said: "Earlier we had lots of audience to watch this film that included people from abroad. Now there is hardly any audience coming in.
"We have 1105 seats in one screen and out of which hardly 100 to 200 seats used to get occupied so it doesn't make sense to run it any longer."
The normal tickets cost of this film was Rs. 20, Rs. 17 and Rs. 15 at the hall, drastically lower than what the multiplexes charge.

However he says now the other fresh films will get extra screens.

"Earlier because of DDLJ the other films does not used to get all the screens now it will be a benefit for fresh films which now can occupy the shows which was earlier occupied by DDLJ," said Desai.
Produced by the late Yash Chopra, the film marked Aditya Chopra's debut as a director.

The film was termed as a refreshing change for cinema lovers with all ingredients of a Bollywood masala potboiler -- love, romance, comedy, action, melodrama, thrills, songs and dance -- put together cohesively to tell a story of the victory of true love.

DDLJ has a simple story -- a fun loving London-bred Punjabi boy Raj (Shah Rukh) meets an NRI simpleton Simran (Kajol) during an European holiday. Love blossoms between them, but winning over the girl's conservative family is not a cakewalk for the hero, who then makes every effort to take his 'dulhania' (bride) with him.

The film also featured Amrish Puri, Farida Jalal, Anupam Kher and Mandira Bedi.

5.Hidden Gems In Movies You Won't Believe You Missed

17. Lilo and Stitch

Dumbo can be seen in Lilo and Stitch!

18. Tron

In Tron, Mickey Mouse's head can be seen as a computer-generated lake which makes sense when you find out that Disney released the movie.

19. Aladdin 

Mickey Mouse also makes a quick appearance in Aladdin when Rajah the tiger is transformed back to normal. 

20. Fight Club

Each scene, a Starbucks cup can be seen which is quite humorous considering the story line.

4.Hidden Gems In Movies You Won't Believe You Missed

13. Aladdin

The beast makes a cameo appearance in Aladdin in a pile of toys!

14. Toy Story

The carpet in Toy Story is the same carpet as the one in The Shining.

15. King Kong (2005)

The morse code as the ship approaches Skull Island actually says "Show Me The Monkey!" and not a warrant for Jack Black's arrest.

16. Sam Raimi's car makes cameo appearances in multiple movies

Director Sam Raimi's car has made multiple appearance like Evil Dead and Drag Me To Hell.

3.Hidden Gems In Movies You Won't Believe You Missed

9. Star Trek

R2-D2 makes an appearance!

10. Star Wars: The Phantom Menace

E.T makes an appearance! Watch:

11. Evil Dead 2 (1987)

Freddy Krueger's glove can be spotted above the door in the shed.

12. The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

A lot of the license plates seen in this movie are actually references to sections in the Bible. Agent Smith's license plate was IS5416 which corresponds to Isaiah 54:16: "Behold, I have created the smith, who blows the fire of coals, and produces a weapon for its purpose. I have also created the ravager to destroy.”

2.Hidden Gems In Movies You Won't Believe You Missed

5. Back To The Future

Remember the scene where Marty crashes into a family farmhouse in the 1950's? Well, the farmer calls his son Sherman and the mailbox says Peabody. Sherman and Peabody are cartoon characters who had access to a time machine! 

6. Batman (1989)

At the beginning of the movie, a sketch of Batman is shown. In the corner, Bob Kane, the original creator of the character's signature is seen. This is a nice homage to him by director Tim Burton. 

7. Scarface (1932)

Every time a character is about to die an X is shown. I guess X does mark the spot, huh?

8. I Am Legend

In I Am Legend, a mashup logo of Batman and Superman can be seen on one of the billboards...foreshadowing? Yep, 2016.

Hidden Gems In Movies You Won't Believe You Missed

1. Anchorman

In Anchorman, the restaurant Veronica Corningstone goes to with the other women from the news network is called Escupimos En Su Alimento, which directly translated means "We Spit in Your Food".

2. Tron

Pacman makes a little appearance in Tron if you look at the right side of the complex-looking screen.

3. Iron Man

If you look closely there's a prototype for Captain America's shield on the work bench behind Tony Stark. 

4. Wall-E

In Wall-E, Hamm from Toy Story makes a quick appearance. You can spot him just to the left of Eve's head.

Being A Dad Is The Best Job Ever

When you think of most cool jobs, they involve fighting fires, carrying a gun, or driving massive machines that could flatten houses. When you think of being a father, is "best job ever" even on your mind? If it isn't, then you are doing it wrong. These dads go out of their way to show their kids how cool, important, and loved they are.

Being a dad can be tough, it can be exhausting, and it can totally challenge your patience - but I hope this list inspires you to step it up a notch and give your kids the childhood they'll always remember you for - because that's the best job anyone could ever imagine.

1. This dad is definitely one with the force.

via reddit /u/ afbaxter7

2. The world's DADliest warrior.

via reddit /u/ andrewjackson5

3. Suddenly you realize how much daddy engineering goes into things you use everyday.

via imgur /u/ rickyoredd

4. His daughter will have to hear about this heroic moment for the rest of her life.

via imgur / tumb1r | 4GIFs

Why Bill Gates Is Jealous of Mark Zuckerberg

Question : “Is there anything in life that you regret doing or not doing?” Here’s how the billionaire responded:

Gates Ans :  I feel pretty stupid that I don’t know any foreign languages. I took Latin and Greek in High School and got A’s and I guess it helps my vocabulary but I wish I knew French or Arabic or Chinese. I keep hoping to get time to study one of these – probably French because it is the easiest. I did Duolingo for awhile but didn’t keep it up. Mark Zuckerberg amazingly learned Mandarin and did a Q&A with Chinese students – incredible.

Call to end police virginity tests

Human Rights Watch said in a report that such tests were a longstanding practice in Indonesia, where patriarchal attitudes and practices in the security forces are common.

The report was based on interviews with female police officers and police applicants in six Indonesian cities who had undergone the so called "two-finger" test to determine whether their hymens are intact.

The requirement is even posted on the jobs website for Indonesia's national police. Today it read: "In addition to the medical and physical tests, women who want to be policewomen must also undergo virginity tests. So all women who want to become policewomen should keep their virginity."
Citing medical experts, Human Rights Watch said the physical tests are useless in determining virginity.

Indonesian police spokesman Major General Ronny Sompie urged people not to "respond negatively" to the tests, saying they were aimed at ensuring applicants were free from sexually transmitted diseases. He said both male and female recruits also get blood tests for STDs.

"All of this is done in a professional manner and did not harm the applicants," said Maj Gen Sompie.

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Human Rights Watch has documented the use of abusive virginity tests by police in several other countries, including Egypt, India and Afghanistan.

In a video interview recorded by the group, a 24-year-old Indonesian woman said she was among 20 applicants who underwent the test.

"I feared that after they performed the test I would not be a virgin anymore," she told the group in a silhouetted video interview. "They inserted two fingers with gels ... it really hurt."

Three Americans among four killed in Jerusalem synagogue attack

Israeli police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld confirmed that three of the four victims were dual Israeli citizens, the fourth also held a British passport

Israeli emergency services members and security personnel stand outside the synagogue. 

 

 

Three Americans and one Briton were among the four Jewish worshippers killed in an attack on a Jerusalem synagogue Tuesday morning.

The American victims were Moshe Twersky, 59; Arieh Kupinsky, 43 and Kalman Levi, 55. The fourth victim was Avraham Shmuel Goldberg, 68, a British-Israeli citizen. Two Palestinian men rushed into the synagogue with knives and a gun during morning prayers, assaulting men apparently at random. Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld confirmed that the three Americans were dual US-Israeli citizens.


US secretary of state John Kerry issued a statement decrying the violent murders, while Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas condemned the attack, the first time he has done so since the recent escalation in violence.
Police shot both assailants dead after the attack. The Israeli army posted photos showing a man in a prayer shawl dead alongside a bloodied butcher’s cleaver. Rosenfeld told BBC Radio 4: “Everybody was praying peacefully without any disruptions whatsoever and then all of a sudden the terrorists go into a place of worship and peace and turn it into a killing nightmare.”
According to public profiles, Twersky was head of an English speaking religious college in Jerusalem, the son of Isadore Twersky, the founder of Harvard University’s Center for Jewish Studies, and the grandson of a founder of the Modern Orthodox movement. Levi, Kupinsky and Goldberg were also rabbis.


The two Palestinians were identified by family members as cousins Ghassan and Uday Abu Jamal. The attack on the synagogue in the ultra-Orthodox Jewish neighborhood of Har Nof, comes nearly a day after the discovery of Palestinian driver, Yusuf Ramuni, found hanged in his bus. Police said an autopsy indicated suicide, but the man’s family contends he was attacked. The recent violence follows a 50-day war in July and August between Gaza and Israel.

Facebook to get office-friendly with its new version

 

In a bid to become an integral part of office life, the social networking site Facebook is reportedly working on a new version of its service to make your working hours more productive.

The new service called “Facebook at Work” will allow employees to have work-friendly chats, connect with business partners, document collaboration and increase storage facilities. 

It will look like Facebook with news feeds but will offer work and personal pages, the Financial Times reported. 

The enterprise-friendly version of its service will take on Google, Microsoft and LinkedIn, it added.

It is not known when the professional site will launch, but it will reportedly be free initially.

13 Amazing Products You'll Want In Your Home Right Now.

Ukraine crisis: US accuses Russia over 'incursion'

The US has accused Russia of undermining a ceasefire in Ukraine after reports of Russian 
troops and military hardware entering the country. 

The US envoy to the UN, Samantha Power, also accused Russia of pursuing war in Ukraine while talking peace.


Russia's deputy ambassador to the UN, Alexander Pankin, dismissed the allegations as propaganda. 


More than 4,000 people have died in the conflict between Ukraine's military and pro-Russian rebels in the east.


Nearly a million people have been driven from their homes since the fighting started in April.

The violence has continued despite a ceasefire deal struck in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, in September, with both sides accusing each other of violations.


Relations between Russia and the West are at their lowest ebb since the Cold War as a result of the conflict.

As Nada Tawfik reports, the Kremlin has denied Nato's claims

The US called a meeting of the UN Security Council on Wednesday after Nato claimed Russia was sending troops, artillery and air defence systems across the border into Ukraine.

"The pattern is clear," Ms Power told the meeting. "Where Russia has made commitments it has failed to meet them." 


"Russia has negotiated a peace plan and then systematically undermined it at every step. It talks of peace but it keeps fuelling war."


However, Mr Pankin said the Nato claims "do not reflect the situation on the ground". He accused security council members of a "foray into propaganda".

Meanwhile, Jens Toyber-Frandzen, the UN assistant secretary-general for political affairs, also warned of "a return to full-scale fighting".

A column of unidentified tanks was seen on a road near the rebel-held town of Shakhtarsk on Monday   He said an alternative scenario - a simmering conflict "with sporadic low-level battles" - would also be "a catastrophe for Ukraine".

He also expressed concern at a third prospect - "a frozen or protracted conflict that would entrench the status quo in south-eastern Ukraine for years or decades to come".

Nato's top commander, US Gen Philip Breedlove, told reporters on Wednesday that the Russian troop deployment in Ukraine may be intended to reinforce "pockets" under separatist control.


This could, he said, help them to form "a more contiguous, more whole and capable pocket of land in order to then hold on to it long term".

He did not specify how many troops, vehicles or weapons had been seen. A Nato official confirmed to the BBC that Nato had "assessed" that the equipment and troops were Russian in origin.

US Gen Breedlove, Nato: "What worries me most is that... the border between Ukraine and Russia is completely porous"

However, Russian defence official Maj-Gen Igor Konashenkov said "there was and is no evidence" to support Gen Breedlove's claims. 


The current crisis in Ukraine can be traced back to the overthrow of a pro-Russian president by street protests in February.


Russia responded with the annexation of the Ukrainian territory of Crimea. Pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine also began a separatist uprising against the government.

Russia has consistently denied sending troops and equipment to support the rebels. However, the rebels have admitted being helped by "volunteers" from Russia. 

 


The main city in Ukraine's east, Donetsk, has seen its heaviest shelling in weeks

Separately, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the country's long-range aircraft would go on patrol flights over the Arctic Ocean to the Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico.


He said that the current situation required Russia to restart the flights, which were cut at the end of the Cold War.


Meanwhile, Ukraine's defence minister has said that government forces are redeploying in preparation for a possible new offensive by pro-Russian separatist rebels.


Heavy artillery fire rocked the east Ukrainian city of Donetsk, the industrial hub held by pro-Russian separatist rebels, on Wednesday.


There were also reports of fighting near the rebel-held city of Luhansk, with one Ukrainian soldier killed and another injured, according to Ukrainian security forces.

 


 

The only major social media platform Narendra Modi is not using is Tinder

It was just a matter of time before prime minister Narendra Modi created an Instagram account. With an active presence on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn already, Tinder is possibly the only major social media platform Modi hasn’t yet conquered.

Perfectly timed at the start of his 11-day foreign tour, the tech-savvy Indian prime minister made the big announcement on Twitter:

Modi is the most popular Indian politician on Twitter, and the fifth most-followed world leader. He has 7.8 million followers on the social networking site.

Now, he has decided to give Instagram a shot. His account already has more than 58,000 followers (and counting).

Modi’s first post on the photo-sharing channel came from the 25th ASEAN Summit, Myanmar—the first stop on his tour before he takes off for Australia and Fiji 

The Indian prime minister is a regular user of Facebook, where his page has 24,598,120 likes. On the professional networking site LinkedIn, the prime minister has 250,384 followers..

This Guy’s Wife Got Cancer, So He Did Something Unforgettable. The Last 3 Photos Destroyed Me...

We hat "Buddhistthings" decided to share this story as it will increase awareness on cancer and  Angelo’s organization that helps women with financial difficulties during their trials with breast cancer.

The first time photographer Angelo Merendino met Jennifer, he knew she was the one. They fell in love and got married in New York’s Central Park, surrounded by family, friends, and loved ones.

Five months later Jen was diagnosed with breast cancer. From Angelo’s blog: “I remember the exact moment…Jen’s voice and the numb feeling that enveloped me. That feeling has never left. I’ll also never forget how we looked into each other’s eyes and held each other’s hands. ‘We are together, we’ll be ok.’”

Throughout her battle, Angelo decided to photograph it. He wanted to humanize  the face of cancer on the face of his wife. The photos speak for themselves.

Angelo Merendino

Angelo and Jennifer’s story is tragic, but it’s in the face of a tragedy such as this that we rise above. In Angelo’s case, he has started an organization to help women with their financial struggles during their trials with breast cancer.

Please share this story with everyone you know to help Angelo’s story get out, scroll back up to the top and click the share button. Thank you.

You can get that and much more at Angelo’s blog: mywifesfightwithbreastcancer.com