Apple's use of web carousels target of new patent lawsuit
A Pennsylvania man is suing Apple for using carousels on its website, claiming the common web user interface is in infringement of patented technology dating back to 2008.
Lodged in Northern Illinois District Court on Thursday, Samuel Lit's lawsuit asserts Apple's website homepage, which contains a number of display windows that cycle through various new and upcoming products, is in infringement of a patent covering web carousel technology.
As of this writing, Apple.com features a large dynamic carousel element with a four-pane UI cycling through major product advertisements for iPhone 6s, iPad Pro, Apple Watch and MacBook. Assets are rotated on a timer, hence the term "carousel," though visitors are able to cycle through at their leisure by clicking on interactive onscreen arrows or a row of dots.
Lit is leveraging U.S. Patent No. 8,793,330 for an "Information display system and method," which includes claims that describe elements of a display engine configured to deliver carousel content from a server to a webpage. Further claims cover statistical and financial functions in relation to database analytics.
A resident Penn Valley, Penn., filing the suit under Illinois' long-arm statute, Lit is an experienced radio broadcaster who dabbles in computer technology, according to Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia. He previously served as President of Hy Lit Radio Technologies, official applicant of the '330 patent.
It appears that Lit attempted to monetize his carousel patent through a website called YourDisplayCarousel.com, which ceased operation in December. He also marketed search engine technology through HyLitGlobalSearch.com, as well as network audio solutions and a live streaming radio show via HyLitRadio.com and HyLitRhythm.com. The various projects were named after Lit's father Hy, a famous local radio broadcaster.
Lit seeks royalties with interest in his case against Apple.
Lodged in Northern Illinois District Court on Thursday, Samuel Lit's lawsuit asserts Apple's website homepage, which contains a number of display windows that cycle through various new and upcoming products, is in infringement of a patent covering web carousel technology.
As of this writing, Apple.com features a large dynamic carousel element with a four-pane UI cycling through major product advertisements for iPhone 6s, iPad Pro, Apple Watch and MacBook. Assets are rotated on a timer, hence the term "carousel," though visitors are able to cycle through at their leisure by clicking on interactive onscreen arrows or a row of dots.
Lit is leveraging U.S. Patent No. 8,793,330 for an "Information display system and method," which includes claims that describe elements of a display engine configured to deliver carousel content from a server to a webpage. Further claims cover statistical and financial functions in relation to database analytics.
A resident Penn Valley, Penn., filing the suit under Illinois' long-arm statute, Lit is an experienced radio broadcaster who dabbles in computer technology, according to Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia. He previously served as President of Hy Lit Radio Technologies, official applicant of the '330 patent.
It appears that Lit attempted to monetize his carousel patent through a website called YourDisplayCarousel.com, which ceased operation in December. He also marketed search engine technology through HyLitGlobalSearch.com, as well as network audio solutions and a live streaming radio show via HyLitRadio.com and HyLitRhythm.com. The various projects were named after Lit's father Hy, a famous local radio broadcaster.
Lit seeks royalties with interest in his case against Apple.
Comments
Also, if you are smiling in your digital photo, I have a patent on that, too. Therefore, you cannot smile for photos and if you do, I Sue You.
How can one sue a company because they have their website laid out in a certain way?????
From: http://www.adamfellowes.com/blog/user-experience/the-rise-of-the-carosuel
So where did the carousel originate?
The first ‘main stream’ use of the carousel is that seen as part of the iTunes user interface. Here Apple took the analogy of the carousel from the jukebox that many music fans are familiar with. Fittingly this is a great digitization of a very tactile interaction that many will have encountered before and so matching the mental model of navigating a vast music collection.
When this interaction is taken out of this space its familiarity is lost. Experienced (apple) users are familiar with information being made available in this way. Those less exposed to apple products, often, during user testing session’s falter in successfully finding or navigating content presented as part of a carousel.
However, I consider carousels to be a bad UX design so I am surprised Apple chose it.
I don't remember when Apple started using carousels -- when the iOS App store got redesigned? At some version of iTunes? But what I wonder is: When is he going to go after Amazon? Unlike Apple, where a carousel was part of an app one had to dig for, more or less, Amazon used the exact same thing as the main interface in their forked Android tablets. Prominent and a feature they boasted of.
So when's Amazon getting their turn (no pun)?