MySpace and Facebook seem to be hurtling forward with the momentum of runaway freight trains. But the social-networking sites could soon find themselves fighting a patent war, according to CNET News.
Friendster, the once-hip Web site that has since become a social-networking second-stringer, has been granted a patent for its "system, method and apparatus for connecting users in an online computer system based on their relationships within social networks." The site had applied for the patent in 2003.
For the time being, Friendster is hoping that the patent will generate publicity and draw new users to the site. But company officials haven’t ruled out filing lawsuits, and some analysts are already speculating that Friendster will launch a legal campaign against its more-trafficked rivals. —Brock Read
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