First it was trying to patent the “one-click” - now these assholes have come up with something even more ridiculous. I won’t be buying (or selling) any books with them. Below is an article that may be of interest.
BEZOS PATENT MAY BE GIFT TO AMAZON
By BEN SILVERMAN
December 9, 2002 –
E-COMMERCE giant Amazon.com is probably grateful for brisk
holiday business; and if the retailer has its way, gift delivery
will always be a happy occasion.
In a patent application filing that came to light last week,
Amazon.com Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos and Chief
Technology Officer Shel Kaphan are trying to corner the market on
“coordinating the delivery of a gift.”
The patent application appears to cover the simple process of
sending someone an e-mail or contacting a consumer via phone to
inform them they haven’t provided sufficient shipping
information.
“The present invention coordinates the delivery of a gift given
by a gift giver . . . when the gift giver did not provide
sufficient delivery information,” the patent application says.
“The invention can therefore coordinate the delivery of a gift
whose order specifies insufficient delivery information, or even
no delivery information, for the recipient.”
Bezos and Kaphan are named as inventors of the “technology,” but
Amazon.com is never named in the application.
While the patent application is aimed mainly at shoppers who do
not provide all the relevant delivery information, the patent
could also apply to the “wish list” concept, in which consumers
complete shopping lists in the hope that other people will buy
the products as gifts.
A spokesperson for Amazon.com said the lawyer familiar with the
patent application will be out of the country until next week.
Spokespeople for leading Amazon.com competitors Overstock.com and
Barnes&Noble.com had no comment.
Barnes&Noble.com waged a fierce two-year battle against
Amazon.com over the Seattle firm’s patented “1-click” technology,
which allowed companies to store information so consumers could
make purchases without filling out various information pages. The
two companies reached an undisclosed settlement earlier this
year.