You may remember that Neowin previously reported on the letter sent by Apple to Lodsys, defending its App Store developers. Apple claims that the license given by Lodsys covers its developers' use of in-app purchase APIs. The company has now filed a motion to intervene in the lawsuit, claiming that it has a right to, since Apple licensed the technology. This comes from BlogSpot and Ars Technica. The patent in question is US Patent #772,078 and says it is a patent for "Methods and systems for gathering information from units of a commodity across a network."
This especially hurts independent developers. Patent lawsuits are very expensive, leaving developers no choice but to settle. This would only encourage more lawsuits. So Apple probably feels like it has no choice to step in, knowing that it needs small developers and small developers rely on Apple for APIs and other technology.
Apple argues in its motion that it has a vested interest in the property. Apple says in the motion that developers "lack the resources to fully and fairly litigate the issue of whether Lodsys's claims are exhausted". This move will be a thorn in Lodsys's side. It is up to the judge to decide whether the intervention will be allowed. However, the intervention will probably be allowed, due to the fact that Apple's case is well-pleaded. It should be interesting to see what the legal system does and how Lodsys and Apple both respond.
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