February 22, 2008
Blackboard Wins Patent-Infringement Case Against Rival Courseware Provider
A federal jury in Texas ruled this afternoon in favor of Blackboard Inc., the nation’s leading online provider of course-management software, in its patent-infringement lawsuit against Desire2Learn Inc.
Blackboard sued the smaller Canadian-based company in 2006, asserting that it had infringed a patent that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office had granted Blackboard that year. As a result, the larger company said, Desire2Learn had taken away customers that should have been Blackboard’s.
Desire2Learn, which has its headquarters in Kitchener, Ontario, argued that Blackboard’s patent was invalid and should never have been granted in the first place. Lawyers for the company said that Blackboard officials were aware of similar technology, or what’s known as “prior art,” that existed before it filed its patent application, and that the company had failed to divulge that information to the patent office.
The jury, which began deliberating just before noon on Thursday in the U.S. District Court in Lufkin, Tex., announced its verdict this afternoon. The case has been closely watched by campus-technology officials, many of whom feared that a win by Blackboard could stifle innovation and leave colleges and course-management software providers vulnerable to more legal challenges by Blackboard.
In particular, institutions that use open source systems designed by Moodle and Sakai have been concerned that an adverse verdict could shut them down, though Blackboard has promised to take no action against such users.
Should campuses that do not use Blackboard be worried? Tell us what you think. —Katherine Mangan
Posted on Friday February 22, 2008 | Permalink |Comments
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Blackboard has become the new RIAA. Sue first, innovate later.
— Darrell Feb 22, 05:17 PM #
Blackboard exists (and innovates) because higher ed does not have the collective will to develop (and support) a CMS that can meet a variety of needs. We’re all so in love with our own technology that “open source enterprise [fill in the blank]” has become an oxymoron.
— John Feb 22, 05:44 PM #
I work in the elearning group at a large university that uses Blackboard. During the past few years Blackboard has turned into a bully. Innovation and customer service have reached a low point. Now that Blackboard has won the lawsuit, it will only get worse. Next week our group will choose a new LMS to replace Blackboard for the Fall semester.
— Jessica Feb 22, 07:03 PM #
This is a rather sad outcome since there is nothing in the patent claims that has not bee done way before 1999 and going back to the 70’s.
Does anyone know what the status is the internal review by the patent office of the blackboard patent?
— Murray Turoff Feb 22, 07:33 PM #
Blackboard is too top heavy and too damn expensive. While large universities can perhaps afford to be held up by these people, smaller and start-up institutions must pay prohibitive licensing rates for mediocre and soon to be outdated asynchronous course management software. If Blackboard changes its path and decides to take on open source, it will undoubtedly earn the wrath of so many academics that it will unlikely see a similar victory but instead a backlash of unimaginable portions. This company together with the U.S. Patents Office could singlehandedly sink online distance education as we know it. But they will not. How puerile.
— Robert Feb 22, 08:24 PM #
I think this big bully stance by Blackboard will ultimately work against them. I hear so much negative talk about them (in the way that people just hate Microsoft – another monopolistic giant).
What they have in their favor are lots of users over a barrel – unable to easily convert hundreds of existing courses to another platform and the problem of re-training faculty to use a new system. But that will be overcome. I wouldn’t want my 401K in Blackboard stock.
— Pam Feb 22, 11:48 PM #
Yes, the patent office is very slow to follow up on claims as it is overwhelmed and understaffed, as everything else. The attorneys for d2l are patiently waiting for the outcome, although it’s been over a year since filing.
— anonymous Feb 23, 09:15 AM #
Blackboard has pledged not to enforce the patent against open source products like Sakai and Moodle, so I don’t think it is accurate to say users of those systems are particularly concerned. We wish none of this were happening, of course, but open source may be the safest place to be for those concerned about patent lawsuits.
— Michael Korcuska Feb 23, 11:23 AM #
Bullying is ugly no matter who does it and (mis)using the court system to do it is even uglier. I so dislike working with the kind of unethical people this company attracts. It is definitely hard having to try to make the best of it. It just never stops stinking.
— Unhappy BB Ce6 customer Feb 25, 04:41 PM #
This is an outrage. Now even prouder of our decision to pick Angel…
— Marcius Feb 25, 05:12 PM #
The patent Blackboard received was a foolish mistake by the Patent Office and will continue to generate controversy. The Patent Office—quite literally—was uninformed about the internet and based its patent not on design novelty but on “first to mention the concept.” To this day, the Patent Office will issue a patent to someone who comes in and “explains” something in such convincing fashion that they need not present a working model. Ammonia-based engines that will be used to suck sulphur from the volcanoes on Io? Patent it! Little silver robots that can clean, fold, and hang your drapes? Patent it!
— marci Feb 25, 06:53 PM #
I felt physically ill when I read this. Like many others, I am tired of being abused by Blackboard, and I can’t stand their bullying stance. I worked with a product (LearningSpace) that did everything that they did (including the oh-so-important user roles business) long before their patent. It’s crazy that the patent was ever awarded at all.
I and am going to start looking for alternatives right away. Thankfully, I am in a position in my University where I can make compelling suggestions for change. I don’t want to work with a company like this any more.
— Anonymous Feb 26, 12:01 PM #
Don’t believe their pledge to not go after Moodle and Sakai. They also promised that they weren’t seeking to sue people if they won this patent, and then what happened less than a week after earning it? Go Desire2Learn – we support you!
Anyway, I have said this a million times, but I read the BB patent (it is easy to understand), and I don’t see how they can claim to have invented stuff that I was writing college papers about in 1995 – and they weren’t even a comapny until 1997-98!
— Matt Feb 26, 01:34 PM #
Marcius, be wary, Angel falls into a very similiar category of LMS’s like Desire2Learn. Angel users are by no means safe after the verdict with Desire2Learn. Come to think of it, companies like rSmart and Moodlerooms which sell their services implementing opensource would technically fall into the same category. Open source is not safe, even under the evil promise from BB.
— Rebecca Feb 26, 11:48 PM #