An American company specializing in web development tools has recently been granted a patent, allowing them to own a variety of enhanced audio-visual applications on the Internet. The company also announced that it will take strict action against copyright violators.
Rich media refers to audio-visual technology that has been developed or improved to provide multimedia content, expanding creative spaces or enabling quick interaction among web users. |
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has awarded Balthaser Online, based in San Francisco, a certificate for “methods, systems, and processes for designing and creating rich media applications.”
According to Balthaser, with this patent, they have the right to manage the deployment of advanced technologies such as Macromedia and Adobe’s Flash and Flex, Sun Microsystems’ Java, Web 2.0 Ajax synthesis technology, XAML, and all devices that support access to Internet applications, including desktops, mobile devices, set-top boxes, and gaming consoles.
“Balthaser has the ability to license nearly every enhanced audio-visual application on the Internet,” stated Neil Balthaser, CEO and Chairman of Balthaser.
If successful, royalty revenues for Balthaser could reach millions, or even billions, of USD. However, this issue is controversial as Balthaser filed for the patent on February 9, 2001, while Javu Technologies had already developed an online multimedia content generation system since 1999.
Currently, Microsoft, Google, and many other major companies are investing in rich media Internet services through PCs, games, and handheld devices. For instance, Microsoft has begun using Ajax in Windows Live Mail to compete with Gmail. Google has also developed Google Page Creator based on Ajax technology to challenge the leading web development toolkit of the world’s number one software company.
Details about the patent content can be viewed here.
T.N.
