Patenting has a great business potential and therefore managing it tactfully can result in a profitable business.
The technology "Haptics" has been invented and patented by Immersion Corporation, San Jose, California. This technology gives a tactile interface to the digital world, which is an important component of PC gaming devices. The technology enables a player to get real life gaming experiences, like the control units in the gamer's hand rattling, jumping, pulsating and purring while the gamer is playing a car game. This technology which is also called as vibrotactile technology is one of the important components of Sony's PlayStation 2 and Microsoft's Xbox gaming consoles. Although the patent right of this exciting technology lies with Immersion Corporation, Sony infringed upon Immersion's patent rights and openly promoted its popular gaming machines as having vibrotactile features.
Immersion's CEO, Victor Viegas, in 2002 recognized the business potential of their dormant patent assets and decided to pursue the "business" they had lost due to patent infringement. Immersion already holds around 240 patents in its intellectual property portfolio and has nearly 280 pending patent applications. |