NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Jun 5, 2012) - Article One Partners (AOP), the world's largest patent research community, today announced the formation of a partnership with the Appsterdam Legal Foundation, a global trade organization for mobile software developers. Appsterdam Foundation attorneys and developers have selected AOP to conduct patent research, harnessing the global reach and highest-quality research of the AOP community. AOP will help Appsterdam accomplish a mandate of supporting ongoing innovation and business success in the mobile app development community. In addition, Appsterdam will include AOP in its best-practices approach to managing the ongoing patent litigation situation facing app developers today.
The mobile app economy, which has created nearly 500,000 jobs in the United States alone [1], is seeing record growth. According to IDC, mobile app downloads are expected to hit 76.9 billion in 2014 [2]. Yet patent infringement claims are hampering the process of bringing new mobile innovations to market.
"Some developers are so intimidated by patent infringement claims, especially from non-practicing entities (NPEs), that they are contemplating moving offshore and no longer releasing their products in the United States," said Michael McCoy, Chief Legal Officer of Appsterdam. "For some developers, it's a better business decision to stop releasing apps in the United States than to face potentially massive patent infringement liability. That's a real shame, especially for the development culture, which is driven by sharing and innovation. It is time to educate and empower developers -- and keep the app economy going strong in the process."
With this partnership with AOP, developers now have the ability to easily secure the patent research they need in order to stop non-practicing entities (NPEs) from undermining their innovations. The Appsterdam Legal Foundation, which has attorneys on staff, will help them accomplish the goal of continuing to innovate and bring apps to market in what can be a complex legal environment.
"Our partnership with AOP is a huge win for the developer community," said McCoy. "Through AOP, developers can easily secure the information they need in order to move their products to market. In turn, those developers can use their own knowledge and unique resources to contribute to the AOP community. Just like the development community, AOP is a community-based network where the sum is greater than its component parts."
"Appsterdam members now have the same ability to access patent data as our Fortune 100 clients," said Cheryl Milone, founder and CEO of Article One Partners. "AOP is leveling the playing field for entrepreneurs and small businesses that comprise a significant portion of the mobile app development community. Developers can participate as AOP community members as well and can receive compensation for correcting the problem with which they are faced. In this situation, AOP brings our clients and our communities together to improve our patent system."
Founded in October 2011, the Appsterdam Legal Foundation is a collective that provides mobile developers with access to educational programs, legal advice and other important resources. With close to 2,500 members, Appsterdam is seeking donations in order to meet a growing demand for full-time attorneys to help the development community navigate legal and business issues. To donate and to learn more about the Appsterdam Legal Foundation, please visit: http://appsterdamlegalfoundation.org.
For more information on active Patent Studies and to learn how to participate in AOP's research, go to http://www.articleonepartners.com.
About Article One Partners
Article One Partners (AOP) has revolutionized the transparency of patent data. Today, AOP is the world's largest patent research community. The company has distributed requests for prior art research to more than one million scientists and technologists using a global online human search engine. AOP is active in 188 countries, presents search requests in 10 languages and is exceptionally successful in identifying key foreign language evidence, non-textual and non-patent literature. The company is a partner to 16 Fortune 100 companies, 50 Forbes Global 2000 and 7 of the top 10 US patent filers. AOP's client satisfaction rate exceeds 90%.
AOP has a distinguished Board, led by Marshall Phelps, the former head of patents and licensing at IBM and Microsoft. Founded in 2008 by patent community leader, inventor and entrepreneur, CEO Cheryl Milone, the company's product offerings have been called "revolutionary" and "game changing" by leading authorities. In short, many consider AOP to be the new industry standard.
About the Appsterdam Legal Foundation
The Appsterdam Legal Foundation is dedicated to funding legal initiatives for App Makers. Through private donations and other funding sources, the Foundation promotes and preserves the Appsterdam community by protecting its most valuable asset -- App Makers and their business. The Foundation serves App Makers as a collaborative partner, sponsoring workshops and seminars designed to educate App Makers and promote their business. We also directly fund the legal defense of our members, as well as critical startup and growth related legal and business consulting services. As Appsterdam becomes the technology center of Europe, the Foundation will become the legal center of Appsterdam.
Sources
[1] eWeek, "New 'App Economy' Creates Nearly 500,000 Jobs: Study," 9 February 2012.
[2] IDC, "IDC Forecasts Worldwide Mobile Applications Revenues to Experience More Than 60% Compound Annual Growth Through 2014," 13 December 2010.
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