Judge tosses Apple motion, allows patent troll Lodsys to continue rampage

Lodsys became one of the most-scorned patent holders in 2011, by making seemingly small cash demands (just 0.575 percent of your revenue, please!) against small app makers, who it said were infringing its patents that cover in-app purchasing and upgrades.

Within months, that brought a legal challenge by Apple, which saw a clear threat to its ecosystem. Apple had already paid to license Lodsys patents when they were in the hands of an earlier owner—Intellectual Ventures. So Apple went to court, arguing that Lodsys can't demand additional payments by threatening iOS developers.

Now, after two years of litigation, it's back to square one. The East Texas judge overseeing Lodsys' systematic patent attack on app developers has refused to even consider Apple's motion. Instead, he allowed the patent-holding company to settle all its cases—and then dismissed Apple's motion as moot. By doing so, US District Judge Rodney Gilstrap—who has inherited the patent-happy East Texas court that once belonged to patent-troll favorite T. John Ward—has enabled Lodsys to threaten developers for months, and perhaps even years, to come.(click here for full article)

New Youtube Channel: My Views, Telecom News - In a Minute

Check it out, I stated a new Youtube channel 
(http://www.youtube.com/user/nashawnbranch) called: 

My Views, Telecom News- In a Minute

This channel offers unique, funny, and  opinionated videos of the  telecommunications industry.  Please subscribe and like to follow my you tube channel.

Who create the first cellphone? - Jesse Eugene Russell

Jesse Eugene Russell was born April 26, 1948 in Hickville, Tennessee in the United States of America into a large African-American family with eight brothers and two sisters. He is the son of Charles Albert Russell and Mary Louise Russell. His early childhood was spent in economically and socially challenged neighborhoods within the inner-city of Nashville. During his early years, he focused on athletics and not academics.

A key turning point in Russell’s life was the opportunity to attend a summer educational program at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. Russell participated in this educational opportunity and began his academic and intellectual pursuits. Russell continued his education at Tennessee State University Tennessee State University where he focused on electrical engineering. A Bachelor of Science Degree (BSEE) in Electrical Engineering was conferred in 1972 from Tennessee State University. As a top honor student in the School of Engineering, Russell became the first African American to be hired directly from a Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) by AT&T Bell Laboratories and subsequently became the first African-American in the United States to be selected as the Eta Kappa Nu Outstanding Young Electrical Engineer of the Year in 1980. Russell continued his academic pursuits and obtained his Master of Electrical Engineering (MSEE) degree from Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, in 1973.

Russell’s innovations in wireless communication systems, architectures and technology related to radio access networks, end user devices and in-building wireless communication systems has fundamentally changed the wireless communication industry. Known for his patented invention of the digital cellular base station, that enabled new digital services for cellular mobile users, Russell continues to innovate in the emerging next generation broadband wireless communication technologies, products, networks, and services as well as “Mobile Cloud Computing” which are shaping the forefront of the 4G Communication Industry.

Over 100 patents granted or in process, thirty years of experience in Research and Development at prominent institutions, and pioneering technologies such as the invention of the first digital cellular base station and fiber optic microcell utilizing high power linear amplifier technology and digital modulation techniques, which laid the foundation for the digital cellular evolution, digital cellular standards, personal communications networks as well as the emergence of “Mobile Cloud Computing” within 4G broadband wireless networks. These are only some of the inventions that have forged new directions for the wireless communication industry.

Tell a Story!

Have you ever visited a kindergarten class during story time? It is the most capitivating experience you will ever see. I don't care what the children are doing, they will run to sit down, sit up close, cross their legs and endure rug burns just to hear the latest fairy tale.

Are adults any different? When I was learning to pitch ideas, I learned that people want to hear a story about something they can identify with. I learned that if you can put your initial presentation in a story format, people will listen. We are all programmed to communicate like this and it is very easy to build confidence speaking when you have an attentive audience. So next time you are nervous about public speaking, try starting out with a story for your pitch and watch your prospect's face light up like its story time in the kindergarten class again.

Keep achieving,
NaShawn

One Thing all Venture Capitalist Want!

In my last post, I stated that I would write about the one thing that every venture capitalist wants to see in a new venture. Initially, I had every inclination of a prompt response. However, I soon discovered that the answer to the question was not so "cut and dry. "

I did some research and found a lot of cookie cutter speculation in many blogs, magazines and publications. But, I did not want to take this lame approach, so instead, I conducted my own research and called some VC's to get their response. Here are the results:

After surveying 100 VC'c and three weeks later, My results were... there was not a clear cut answer. In this case, some VC's said ROI or Management Team, or traction, but nothing conclusive.

Often times in research we want one thing to put our finger on one thing and have that "Ah ha" moment but in realty, real world research does not always demonstrate any significance of one factor over another.

This is why I think there is so much speculation about this topic because people sell they claims/opinions as if it is fact to desperate business owners looking for investors. However, I would rather keep my integrity and give you the cold facts.

Nevertheless, my research was not in vain. After talking with a couple of VC's, they did elude to one trait that I think is worth mentioning. They all stated that they had no emotional attachment to a business and what the liked from the owner was confidence.

Not the type of confidence that you see at the bar from desperate old men trying to pick up 21 year olds, but the type of business confidence that comes with communicating how the VC is going to get their money back. This is something we can build on.

So here is the question, "what is a good way to practice speaking to convey confidence?" In my next post I will address this answer.

NaShawn
PS If you have something you want me to address, drop me a line.

What is wrong with My Business Plan?

I remember my first time writing a business plan after graduate school. I was so sure my business would be successful. Armed with a MBA degree, I happily purchased a business plan software, gathered research, and carefully crafted my plan. After completing the plan in 6 months (yes, it took that long) I began shopping it around to investors, VCs, and banks.

After no interest, I hired a consultant and asked him, “what am I doing wrong?” He chuckled and said, “no one cares about your business idea.” I was so embarrassed and crushed but in the conversation, I came away with some valuable information. As he explained, investors want guarantees that they will get their money. I learned that a business plan is not just about describing your idea, it is also about articulating how the investor is going to get a BIG return on investment (ROI).

I recently interviewed Andrew Forsdick from Addison Capital Advisors in Memphis TN. Addison Capital Advisors is a venture capital firm based in Memphis, TN focused on seed and early stage deals. Andrew gave me an interview and stated that he finds that all start-ups need financial accounting help. According to Andrew, “Entrepreneurs are good at coming up with ideas but are not good in articulating how the business is going to make money.”

I have read thousands of business plans that have this fatal error. Even the most experienced Executives sometimes have unrealistic forecasts and problems demonstrating a good ROI for investors. In reviewing your business plan, this is a hint of what is wrong with most business plans.

In my next post, I will discuss a good, structured deal that will attract VCs. Stay tuned!

NaShawn

Making Connections with Venture Capitalist

I recently read an article for entrepreneurs outlining all of the different venture capitalists in the US. The list contained a list for early seed investors as well as mezzanine rounds. After making some calls and making connections, I found out some valuable information.

What I did not know is that VC's have certain times in the year for investing. Some invest in the beginning of the year others invest based on their fiscal year. Bottom line, knowing the time of the year that VC's invest money can save a lot of time and help you coordinate launch times, presentations, and sales pitches.

Over the next couple of posts, I am going to include more information about making connections with VC's. Stay tuned for more information.

NaShawn

Balance Scorecard for AT&T

It has been quite a while since I blogged but I have been very busy with my classes. In my financial management class, I had to develop a balanced scorecard. The balance scorecard developed by Harvard researchers Drs. Robert Kaplan (Harvard Business School) and David Norton. According to the Balance Scorecard Institute, “The balance scorecard is a strategic planning and management system that is used extensively in business and industry, government, and nonprofit organizations worldwide to align business activities to the vision and strategy of the organization, improve internal and external communications, and monitor organization performance against strategic goals. In this case, I used the status of the wireless battle over the iPhone between Verizon and AT&T to map out a strategy to beat the competition.

Here is a link to the final project: http://www.box.net/shared/go5bt9eqll

FCC RELEASES NEW LOCAL TELEPHONE COMPETITION DATA. Third Collection to Comprehensively Include Interconnected VoIP

New competition telecom data

View more documents from NaShawn Branch.

The Real Reason Clients Need a Business Plan‏