DISH Network hasn't taken "no" "denied" or "not yours" for an answer before in its battle against TiVo, and it's not going to start now. In a statement, the company expressed its plans to appeal the Federal Circuit's ruling against a rehearing to the Supreme Court. No matter how it ends, customers don't have to worry about jackbooted government agents (or software updates, whatever) stealing their precious DISH DVR functionality, because its "next generation" DVR software has already been downloaded to your box, and does not infringe on any patents. We'll leave this up to the lawyers to fight out (and write amusing disclaimers about), but in the meantime hit the read link to hear DISH's side of things.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Bad day for DISH Network, first its satellite is gone for good and now comes word its appeal to overturn TiVo's lawsuit has been denied. That should put an end to the legal push and pull between the companies, with TiVo firmly on top, DISH customers could have their DVRs pulled out from under them. Win in hand, TiVo has a lot more leverage against other providers to put its service on their boxes, (which might not be the worst thing if you've used some cable DVRs) and leaves the company looking a lot more lively.

[Thanks Zatz Not Funny & Thomas Hawk]

Surprise! The German courts have reversed the November decision and now say that T-Mobile has the right to sell the iPhone exclusively in Germany. As a result, the injunction granted to Vodafone has been dismissed. T-Mobile still has the right to seek damages. Ah well, there are still unlocked iPhones in France if anyone's looking.

The gloves are off and the court date is set: T-Mobile faces off with arch rival Vodafone on November 29th in Germany. Will T-Mobile's exclusivity on the iPhone continue unabated or will Germany's other carriers (and their consumers) still not reap the benefits of an unlocked iPhone due to its prohibitively high, €999 cost? Tune in next week to find out.

Pssst, hey Germany... yeah you. Just in case T-Mobile wins and discontinues the unlocked offering, November 29th is the same date that your neighbors in France will start selling their iPhones. Chances are, an unlocked version will be sold too. Just saying is all.

Lawsuits in the technology biz certainly aren't uncommon, and it looks like we may have one more significant ruling about to hit just shortly after CSIRO won its own landmark case. The US Supreme Court justices seem to be viewing earlier, lower cases with a hint of skepticism in regard to decisions that have previously worked to safeguard patented products. While the trial at hand concerns two brake manufacturers -- KSR International and rival Teleflex -- the stipulations could be far reaching; the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit previously ruled that KSR failed to prove that Teleflex (the accuser) "did not encounter teaching, suggestion, or motivation in developing the product." The generally ambiguous test is a thorn in the side of major technology companies getting slapped around by frivolous lawsuits, and Microsoft, IBM, and Cisco Systems have all made time to "submit briefs supporting KSR's stand." Still, the final decision isn't expected for quite some time, so sue-happy firms still have time to submit their counter-briefs, but folks like Vonage and TomTom (just to name a couple) would obviously (ahem) love a victory here.

[Via Slashdot]