Status of Atari patents?

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.classic (More info?)

What is the current status of the Atari patents? Has a company picked
up on the patents yet? I seem to recall JVC (or someone else) picking
up on them in the mid-1990s. And I recall Hasbro also having the
patents at one time, too.

Does anyone know which company presently owns the patents?

Paul

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.classic (More info?)

>What is the current status of the Atari patents?

JVC? I don't think so. Hasbro purchased Atari and all it's intellectual
properties for a mere $5 million in 1996, I believe. They made Atari
one of the labels that Hasbro Interactive published titles under. Then
a couple years later Infogrames bought Hasbro Interactive, and adopted
the Atari moniker as it's own. Since they purchased Hasbro Interactive
in it's entirety, then any Atari patents still valid would be owned by
them.

 

[Guest]

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dunric@yahoo.com wrote in news:1109208428.721233.195240
@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

> What is the current status of the Atari patents? Has a company picked
> up on the patents yet? I seem to recall JVC (or someone else) picking
> up on them in the mid-1990s. And I recall Hasbro also having the
> patents at one time, too.
>
> Does anyone know which company presently owns the patents?
>
> Paul
>
>

I dunno about patents and such, but the current parent company of the Atari
name is Infogrames.

--
___
Chuck Whitby - Founder
East Coast Gaming Expo
http/www.ecgx.com
"It's the games"

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.classic (More info?)

> >What is the current status of the Atari patents?

I think patents are only good for 17 years, so everything pre-Jaguar is
likely in the public domain. Now copyrights and trademarks are a different
story.

Dane.

 

[JOJO]

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.classic (More info?)

"Dane L. Galden" <chigroup(at)ix.netcom.comCHANGE(at)TO@> wrote in message
news:qWcTd.5663$Ba3.723@newsread2.news.atl.earthlink.net...
>> >What is the current status of the Atari patents?
>
> I think patents are only good for 17 years, so everything pre-Jaguar is
> likely in the public domain. Now copyrights and trademarks are a
> different
> story.

I think if something was copywritten after 1970 then the copyright lasts 75
years. Disney did some crooked stuff to renew their copyright on mickeymouse
and friends. Patents... not sure, but I know medical patents expire fairly
soon, but that may only be for their industry. I think Google would be the
best way to go in this sitch since you're getting a bunch of people
speculating (including myself!)

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.classic (More info?)

He's thinking of JTS, which did buy Atari (1st), then Hasbro, then
Infogrames (which has since renamed themselves Atari AFAIK).


"Dan Mazurowski" <kingsmedley@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1109219209.854904.284470@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
>
> >What is the current status of the Atari patents?
>
> JVC? I don't think so. Hasbro purchased Atari and all it's intellectual
> properties for a mere $5 million in 1996, I believe. They made Atari
> one of the labels that Hasbro Interactive published titles under. Then
> a couple years later Infogrames bought Hasbro Interactive, and adopted
> the Atari moniker as it's own. Since they purchased Hasbro Interactive
> in it's entirety, then any Atari patents still valid would be owned by
> them.
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.classic (More info?)

Ah, JTS, that makes sense. But just to be completely clear, JTS did not
buy Atari, Atari bought JTS, then installed the JTS leadership team at
the helm of the company. It's been called a reverse takeover. And now
that I think of it, I was incorrect before when I said Hasbro bought
Atari. They actually bought all of Atari's intellectual properties, not
the company itself. Atari Corp at that point had been renamed JTS, and
it's stock symbol had also been changed (from ATC to JTS).

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.classic (More info?)

I was going by the info here: http/www.classicgaming.com/museum/2600/ but
you're correct. They originally did merge - and eventually became JTS -
before selling all the Atari properties to Hasbro.


"Dan Mazurowski" <kingsmedley@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1109486718.838889.124980@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...
> Ah, JTS, that makes sense. But just to be completely clear, JTS did not
> buy Atari, Atari bought JTS, then installed the JTS leadership team at
> the helm of the company. It's been called a reverse takeover. And now
> that I think of it, I was incorrect before when I said Hasbro bought
> Atari. They actually bought all of Atari's intellectual properties, not
> the company itself. Atari Corp at that point had been renamed JTS, and
> it's stock symbol had also been changed (from ATC to JTS).
>