Judge deals Kodak a major setback in Apple patent suit

Those of you longing for more news regarding the ongoing court battle between Apple and Kodak over image patents will be happy to hear that we’ve just received an update on the case.

It appears that the judge, today, has denied the struggling camera company’s request to fast-track the trial, meaning that Kodak could go broke before a decision is reached in court…
As many of you are aware, Kodak is currently going through Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It was hoping to sell off some of its extensive IP portfolio to help pay for the proceedings, but given the fact that some of those patents are being used in this lawsuit, that’s not really an option at the moment.

This is why the company requested that the trial be fast-tracked, but it looks like Judge Allan Gropper isn’t going to allow it. In a hearing today, Gropper stated, “an adversary proceeding will permit the parties to raise issues in an orderly and expeditious fashion and preserve all of their just rights.”

The patents in question are image-related. Apple says that they stem from technology the two companies shared together back in 1994 while working on the QuickTake 100 digital camera. Kodak, however, says that’s not the case, and is seeking compensation for the use of its IP in Apple’s products.

You have to feel bad for Kodak at this point, as the one-time camera giant appears to be getting extremely desperate.

iOS 6 brings built-in support for Government Alerts

Still looking for new iOS 6 features? Then you’re in luck, because we’ve just come across one that you might not have seen yet: Government Alerts.

That’s right, it looks like the latest iteration of Apple’s mobile OS includes built-in support for AMBER alerts, and other emergency notifications…
For those of you who aren’t familiar with AMBER alerts, they are sent out to the public on the suspicion of a child abduction. Then there’s general emergency alerts, which are typically issued during severe weather or other life-endangering events.

From the looks of the above screenshot, users will have the option to receive these alerts natively via push notifications in iOS 6 — something that could come in handy for folks who aren’t constantly around local news sources.

It’s not known, however, how Apple will go about implementing this feature in the public release of iOS 6. It doesn’t appear to be available on all devices in the beta (we’re not seeing it on ours, anyways), and obviously government alerts are going to be country-specific.

Regardless, this is definitely a step in the right direction. These push notifications have the potential to prevent injuries — say in the event a hurricane or tornado is approaching — or even save lives. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out.