Bytephoto sued over US 8,209,618

The first claim:

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1. A method for sharing multi-media content among a plurality of users in a computer network consisting essentially of: creating a plurality of user accounts, each of the user accounts corresponding to one of the plurality of users, and having a plurality of interactive features including a first feature that permits the user to upload the multi-media content to the computer network; forming a user network including one or more of the plurality of user accounts in communication with one or more other user accounts and to the uploaded multi-media content via the computer network; categorizing the uploaded multi-media content in accordance with the subject matter of the uploaded multi-media content; organizing the uploaded multi-media content in a competitive format; and establishing a hierarchy for the uploaded multi-media content within the competitive format by implementing a competitive measurement system; wherein the competitive measurement system consists of: enabling each user to designate a single point to one of a plurality of multi-media content for each one of a plurality of competitive rounds; and ranking a position in the hierarchy for the uploaded multi-media content based on a summation of points.
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Networkworld wrote:


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The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), together with Durie Tangri LLP, is defending a photo hobbyist against an outrageous patent suit from a company that claims to hold the rights to online competitions on social networks where users vote for the winner.

"Our client has been running 'vote-for-your-favorite-photo' polls for years, just for fun and the love of photography,” said EFF Staff Attorney Daniel Nazer, who is also the Mark Cuban Chair to Eliminate Stupid Patents. “The idea that you could patent this abstract idea -- and then demand a settlement to go away -- goes against both patent law and common sense."


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