Interesting thoughts about that weird move by MS. And good ones/correct ones me thinks.
It'd be nice to hear more of those stories. Not because they improve believe in the western laws and courts but because they show how shady the global playing companies really are. ;)
Quote:
Sony didn't just get screwed, it got something I can't even write on here.
But you missed the bit where Immersion are now claiming that because they 'settled' with Sony out of court, it's not actually a settlement in legal terms, so they don't have to pay MS.
If that stands up (and it seems flakey at best to me), then Immersion will be the ones laughing all the way to the bank!
this article is spot on what i was thinking, this is just a way to push Sony around, got a big competitor, just work around a direct assault and remove the foundations from their business
This is a sickening thing to happen, Sony has made some mistakes in its time yes, but its still a leading console maker, and $90m for a motor with an off balance disc of metal, that's just crazy
Hell how can you even patent a disc of metal that isn't balanced, I'm sure people knew how to make a rumble effect before 'Immersion' came along
The last opinion piece on BT I read was pretty below par... I didn't say anything because iirc it was the writers first time on the block. This however provides some truly interesting insight into what's really going on. Bravo BitTech, no wonder I keep coming back for more :)
Great article; I've been saying essentially the same thing on other websites I frequent and I've been flamed for it every time. (I hate being on the less-popular side of the fence =P)
IMHO, Sony should sue MS for anti-competitive practices.
Originally Posted by malcolm The last opinion piece on BT I read was pretty below par... I didn't say anything because iirc it was the writers first time on the block. This however provides some truly interesting insight into what's really going on. Bravo BitTech, no wonder I keep coming back for more :)
So if Immersion won $110m from Sony, MS would actualy be paid back everything that they paid out in the first place. Based on sales (4.5:1) Sony's settlement could have been as much as $117m. MS could have convievably profited in this case with the terms of their settlement. Talk about underhanded. No wonder Immersion only disclosed the settlement as >$90m.
I totaly agree, M$ is a twisted beast. They use some small comapany that has a little leverage to tackle and hurt its competitors. Even though they went about it a "legally"... its still wrong.
And what is with all the lawsuits being thrown at Sony recently anyway? The bigger the name, the easier the target?
Well said. I wrote something to the same general effect in my blog the other day after hearing about IP Innovation (the other notorious patent troll in the tech industry) suing Apple over having tabs in their GUI, although I never really voiced my query on why they hadn't gone after MS since they've got an immensely larger bank account, which begs the question as to whether a similar backdoor deal happened there as well.
Originally Posted by coniferous Heres another question - Nintendo uses force feedback all the time, did they settle with these people?
Don't quote me if I'm wrong, but I believe Nintendo settled or paid of Immersion years back when the N64 Rumble Pak came out. The one thing I disagree on is the value of the rumble feature in games. Specific example is the GameCube and the WaveBird controllers. I have a couple and really loved being wireless but I missed having a rumble feature. With that being said, the rumble quit working with any controller in port 1 anyways so WaveBirds became the defacto standard for my GCN gaming. Force feedback helps to draw a gamer into a game hence all the bitching that took place because of no rumble support in the PS3.
I have a Logitech iFeel optical mouse that has force feedback built into it. I just wish they made more games that took advantage of it (Black & White is the only game I played that did with special quests being unlocked if you had a force feedback mouse.)
Other then my disagreement on that, it's a very well written article.
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It'd be nice to hear more of those stories. Not because they improve believe in the western laws and courts but because they show how shady the global playing companies really are. ;)
That one actually made me smile. Soooo true. :)
If that stands up (and it seems flakey at best to me), then Immersion will be the ones laughing all the way to the bank!
This is a sickening thing to happen, Sony has made some mistakes in its time yes, but its still a leading console maker, and $90m for a motor with an off balance disc of metal, that's just crazy
Hell how can you even patent a disc of metal that isn't balanced, I'm sure people knew how to make a rumble effect before 'Immersion' came along
Although i kinda have an issue with the way people will bitch and complain about patents, but nobody seems to know any good way to fix the system..
I know i don't, its hard to protect an honor a inventors idea.
Heres another question - Nintendo uses force feedback all the time, did they settle with these people?
Phil
Sorry for not saying more, but there isn't really all that much to say.
IMHO, Sony should sue MS for anti-competitive practices.
I'll second that!
So if Immersion won $110m from Sony, MS would actualy be paid back everything that they paid out in the first place. Based on sales (4.5:1) Sony's settlement could have been as much as $117m. MS could have convievably profited in this case with the terms of their settlement. Talk about underhanded. No wonder Immersion only disclosed the settlement as >$90m.
And what is with all the lawsuits being thrown at Sony recently anyway? The bigger the name, the easier the target?
H.B.
Throw a few car chases in along with giant 60 robots 'n' laser guns then you have your self a film (not an oscar winning film though)
From a business perspective, this is a ingenious way to take a stab at your competitors...
I have a Logitech iFeel optical mouse that has force feedback built into it. I just wish they made more games that took advantage of it (Black & White is the only game I played that did with special quests being unlocked if you had a force feedback mouse.)
Other then my disagreement on that, it's a very well written article.