Reefers stand up and fight.

[subsailor]

The following is an article from Reefbuilders.com

Well we started hearing murmurs of trouble brewing at PFO and our investigation has revealed some startling news which will affect the future of all LEDs for aquarium use. The story all began when we were informed that PFO Lighting (http://www.pfolighting.com/), one of the leading innovators and manufacturers of aquarium lighting, laid off their entire staff. Why would a thriving company with innovative products such as the Solaris be forced to do such a thing? Because they are being sued by bottom-feeding patent trolls who have nothing to do with our industry!Please read on to learn more about how this lawsuit is damaging innovation in the industry and how it could lead to a complete absence of LED technology in the aquarium hobby.
Update: You can look over the entire lawsuit here (http://www.reefbuilders.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/p-o08-220p.pdf) and the patent here (http://www.google.com/patents?id=mwWAAAAAEBAJ&dq=marine+aquarium+LED).


This gloomy situation all began with a patent lawsuit which was filed by the greedy folks at Orbital Technologies Corporation, also known as Orbitec (http://www.orbitec.com/). For some unknown reason, this primarily aerospace research and development company with over $150 Million in industry and government contracts decided to patent the use of LEDs for Marine aquariums, well after the people began to use LEDs for marine tanks and well after PFO began shipping the Solaris luminaire. Once they were awarded the really broad and obviously bogus patent, Orbitec filed a lawsuit against the most obvious aquarium LED manufacturer PFO. PFO tried to reason with the heartless corporation, even offering to sell the lighting division to Orbitec. The suits at craptec made it clear that they had no intention of operating in the aquarium industry and they demanded 25% royalties on all LED products sold.
With over $150 Million in contracts, what do they care about squeezing out a few grand from the aquarium industry? Well the road to corporate profit and greed is paved on the backs of hard working folks and the path of least resistance is what makes a river crooked; Orbitec couldnt care any less about the industry they are disrupting and the American companies and jobs they are shuttering. As if things weren’t bad enough in this economy, the target of this lawsuit is not some far away Chinese knock off company, it’s a domestic manufacturer which uses nearly all American labor and parts.
Furthermore, the implication of this lawsuit will affect all light fixtures which use LEDs, that means Current, Aqua Illuminators, AquaFX and even all the little moonlight makers could be next on the chopping block. PFO has tried and failed to convince some of these manufacturers that this lawsuit is in the mutual interest of many parties, should Craptec win this lawsuit, they could singlehandedly halt the production of LED fixtures in the aquarium industry for good.
The impending lawsuit scheduled for this month has already stymied aquarium lighting innovation. We know of several LED fixtures which some of these companies have ready for release but they are withholding from the market until the outcome of the Wisonsin based lawsuit. With PFO’s lawyer fees well over 6 digits and climbing, it’s clear that craptec and it’s army of legal hacks are bleeding PFO of capital until they probably cannot fight the lawsuit anymore.
So Reefbuilders readers, including all of you in the lighting industry we know you’re reading this too, the detritus has hit the fan. The detritus just got real and it is time for us to fight for our industry, for our hobby, and for the good of the American economy. We implore you to become involved in this legal battle anyway you can. Take a moment to email Bob (http://maast.org/forums/morrowr@orbitec.com) and Marty (gustafsonm@orbitec.com)over at craptec what you think about their indifference towards the aquarium hobby or the well being of American manufacturers. Please contact PFO (http://www.pfolighting.com/pfoaquatics/ContactUs.aspx) with your support and most importantly, please comment below on how we can all band together to come to the aid of one of our own in the industry.

[Mr Cob]

I'll stand up..but I have no fight left...

I had no idea about any of this...thx for sharing.

[FossilReef]

Wow. That is seriously ridiculous.

[ACE]

Reading that, I would think they even mean the "aquarium LED" Coral Dynamics offers? Craptec....good name....

[SoLiD]

I'm tired of the BS the we as American Business owners have to go through just to stay in business. How can we even do anything. Stand up and Fight??? I say play dirty with guerilla tactics! Orbitec is doing just that.

[Jonthefishguy]

So let me get this right, you're mad because some company who has no interest in marketing their patent towards the marine industry and wont allow their patent to be used by other companies!?!

Sorry, but I dont agree with you. For whatever reason they deemed fit to patent this idea, it is their patent regardless of whether or not you agree with why it is they way it is.

Besides, not having LED's over your aquarium will not end the hobby or its future. Although many of us would like to see LED's full potential in the aquaria trade, it is not a make or break deal. This hobby as well as other forms of lighting for the marine hobby have done just fine without it.

I would certainly like to add that if I were the patent holder of an idea or product, I would not allow any competitors to sale, modify, or promote my idea at all; regardless of whether it is different than its original patent intent. If I found that someone was using my patent, I would seek to either have royalties paid for the use, seek legal action barring the use of my patent, and or any and all other forms that I deem fit to see that my patent stays with me. This is just business like it or not.

Create a patent and lets see how you react when someone else uses it without your permission. I am not starting a fight, I am simply saying, it is the way it is.

[brewercm]

So let me get this right, you're mad because some company who has no interest in marketing their patent towards the marine industry and wont allow their patent to be used by other companies!?!

Sorry, but I dont agree with you. For whatever reason they deemed fit to patent this idea, it is their patent regardless of whether or not you agree with why it is they way it is.

Besides, not having LED's over your aquarium will not end the hobby or its future. Although many of us would like to see LED's full potential in the aquaria trade, it is not a make or break deal. This hobby as well as other forms of lighting for the marine hobby have done just fine without it.

I would certainly like to add that if I were the patent holder of an idea or product, I would not allow any competitors to sale, modify, or promote my idea at all; regardless of whether it is different than its original patent intent. If I found that someone was using my patent, I would seek to either have royalties paid for the use, seek legal action barring the use of my patent, and or any and all other forms that I deem fit to see that my patent stays with me. This is just business like it or not.

Create a patent and lets see how you react when someone else uses it without your permission. I am not starting a fight, I am simply saying, it is the way it is.


I would somewhat agree with you with this exception if it is true.

"decided to patent the use of LEDs for Marine aquariums, well after the people began to use LEDs for marine tanks and well after PFO began shipping the Solaris luminaire."

Don't understand the legal system for this exact reasoning other than we can add lawyers to the hunting season I'd like to see on politicians from the other thread. Then again one would really cover the other I suppose.:wink_smile:

I actually thought that it has also been upheld in the courts that somebody cannot go and steal somebody's idea and patent it after the fact like this. Not a lawyer and don't want to be one, heck didn't even sleep at a Holliday Inn Express last night so not sure on this part.

[Joshua]

Somebody post cliffs please?

As for patent infringement, if someone indeed has patents on a certain technology it's a valid law suit, that's the way our system works. You can't just take someone's tech and start selling it if it's patented.



I actually thought that it has also been upheld in the courts that somebody cannot go and steal somebody's idea and patent it after the fact like this. Not a lawyer and don't want to be one, heck didn't even sleep at a Holliday Inn Express last night so not sure on this part.

It's called "Prior art" and if that's the case there's nothing to worry about.

[Jonthefishguy]

"decided to patent the use of LEDs for Marine aquariums, well after the people began to use LEDs for marine tanks and well after PFO began shipping the Solaris luminaire."

Even if this IS true, so what. Someone was bound to put a patent on it at some point. Could have been the other way around and Orbitec customers would be up in arms over it. If the companies that were producing these items before they even did any research to see if it was patented and failed to get a patent then its their loss. Its a dog eat dog world and obviosly the dog with enough sense to post a patent on it won. Like I said, its just bussiness.

[justahobby]

No patent can tell you not to use them yourself. The technology is out there and it will be replicated in garages across the globe.

[Bill S]

Hmm. Something's "fishy" here. The patent was filed on Dec 15th, 2004. That's well before PFO started shipping fixtures. I think - but I'm not sure - they started shipping in mid '06?

Should have done a patent search first...

[wesheltonj]

I have read the lawsuit and the patent. Just to let you know that a Patent is not the be all and end all that it might sound. If someone can make an improvement and its open then there not much the Patent holder can do, but file a lawsuit for infringement, and hope try to get 6 folks to say that the Patent was infringed. I understand that they want to "protect" their Patent and the way you protect your Patent is to file an lawsuit. Patent lawsuit are contests, generally the one who has the most money wins.

[subsailor]

My whole thig is they Shouldn't have issued so broad a patent It would be like putting a patent on MH bulbs by a company that produces bulbs strictly growing uses. hmmm i would love to be stuck with only one 3700k bulb choice, wouldn,t that be great, Imagine only one reflector you could use period, for that case imagine if the only one bulb choice could be applied to the Flour aspect as well. If you read through the patent it is way to broad of a patent and shouldn't have been granted in the first place. The whole intention of my post of this is that this is a BRICK AND MORTAR plant here in the US that not only puts money in to the US but provides jobs in the US, Not to mention the hobby stuff. Not just some random online thing ordering stuff from overseas and selling it.

[wesheltonj]

There are lots of American business that Patent everything under the sun and when some poor other company does something that might violate there patent, they jump and demand their share.

One only needs to look at the posterboy of Patent lawsuits - SCO and their Unix/Linix suit.

[Mr Cob]

So let me get this right, you're mad because some company who has no interest in marketing their patent towards the marine industry and wont allow their patent to be used by other companies!?!

Sorry, but I dont agree with you. For whatever reason they deemed fit to patent this idea, it is their patent regardless of whether or not you agree with why it is they way it is.

Besides, not having LED's over your aquarium will not end the hobby or its future. Although many of us would like to see LED's full potential in the aquaria trade, it is not a make or break deal. This hobby as well as other forms of lighting for the marine hobby have done just fine without it.

I would certainly like to add that if I were the patent holder of an idea or product, I would not allow any competitors to sale, modify, or promote my idea at all; regardless of whether it is different than its original patent intent. If I found that someone was using my patent, I would seek to either have royalties paid for the use, seek legal action barring the use of my patent, and or any and all other forms that I deem fit to see that my patent stays with me. This is just business like it or not.

Create a patent and lets see how you react when someone else uses it without your permission. I am not starting a fight, I am simply saying, it is the way it is.

Good points...also PATENTS aren't cheap! LOL!

[CoryDude]

I think George C. Scott played the best Patent.

Sounds like a David and Goliath thing, and it's sad that these types of actions stifle ingenuity.

[corkyGramma]

Aaaaurgh, another example of "we cheat'm & How"