Subject: [idn] FYI on press release by Walid (Jan 14, 2003)

From: "Edmon Chung" <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 15 Jan 2003 18:31:57 -0500

> >General Patent to License, Enforce WALID's Key Internet Patent
> >
> >SUFFERN, N.Y., January 14, 2003 - IDN Technologies LLC (IDNT) announced
today that General Patent Corporation International (GPCI), a premier patent
enforcement firm, will manage the licensing and enforcement of its patent
portfolio covering the use of internationalized domain names for the
Internet, recently acquired from WALID, Inc.  IDNT and GPCI are
headquartered in Suffern, New York.
> >
> >IDNT's patented technology allows Internet users to access web pages and
use Internet applications with domain names that include non-English and
other special characters, which are known as Internationalized Domain Names
(IDN).  Currently, the Internet Engineering Task Force's RFC 1035 standard
only permits domain names to include 37 English characters - the letters
A-Z, the numbers 0-9, and the hyphen/minus sign "-".  The restriction on the
types of characters permitted in domain names has hampered the proliferation
of the Internet in non-English-speaking countries.  IDNT's patented
technology is expected to satisfy the pent-up demand of non-English speaking
Internet users, and also fully complies with the proposed standard for
Internationalizing Domain Names in Applications, recently approved by the
Internet Engineering Steering Group on October 24, 2002.
> >
> >"IDN Technologies is exploring a number of alternatives pertaining to the
licensing and enforcement of its patents," said Alexander Poltorak, Chairman
& CEO of GPCI.  "We would like the technology to be widely available to the
world's Internet users so as to promote the growth and usage of IDNs," he
added. "To that end, IDN Technologies intends to offer the patents for
license on attractive terms."
> >
> >"At the same time, if necessary, GPCI will vigorously enforce the patent
rights of IDN Technologies," said Neil Cohen, GPCI's Assistant General
Counsel, who is spearheading IDN Technologies' licensing and enforcement
campaign.  "While we recognize that some in the Internet community believe
that IDNT's patents should be donated to the public, we believe that the
millions of dollars invested in the development of the technology and the
creativity and foresight of the inventor, Dr. Walid Tout, must be recognized
and adequately compensated," added Mr. Cohen.
> >
> >For licensing terms, contact Neil Cohen at 845-368-2264, or by e-mail at
[email-masked].
> >
> >
> >About IDN Technologies LLC
> >
> >IDN Technologies LLC, headquartered in Suffern, New York, is a joint
venture between WALID, Inc. and  IP Holdings LLC, a leading intellectual
property incubator also located in Suffern, N.Y.  IDN Technologies was
formed for the purpose of licensing and enforcing United States Patent No.
6,182,148, a related pending U.S. application, and corresponding foreign
patent applications throughout the world.  For further information on IDN
Technologies, see www.idntech.com or contact IDN Technologies LLC,
Montebello Park, 75 Montebello Road, Suffern, NY 10901; telephone: (845)
368-2264 or e-mail: [email-masked].
> >
> >About General Patent Corporation International
> >
> >General Patent Corporation International (GPCI) is a premier patent
licensing and enforcement firm headquartered in Suffern, N.Y.  GPCI
represents inventors and patent holders on a contingency basis.
> >
> >GPCI is an affiliate of General Patent Corporation (GPC), a leading full
service intellectual property management firm.  GPC provides IP analysis and
strategy, IP audit and valuation, IP portfolio mining and management, and
technology transfer services to domestic and foreign businesses,
universities, research institutions and individual inventors.
> >
> >For further information on GPCI and GPC, contact General Patent
Corporation, Montebello Park, 75 Montebello Road, Suffern, N.Y. 10901-3740;
telephone: (845) 368-4000; e-mail: [email-masked]; or visit
www.patentclaim.com for GPCI and www.generalpatent.com for GPC.
> >
> >About WALID, Inc.
> >
> >Headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan, WALID, Inc. was established in 1999
to provide a complete solution for registering and resolving multilingual
Internet domain names. The WALID technology enables businesses,
organizations, and individuals to communicate, conduct global commerce and
establish a unique Internet presence in any language.
> >
> >About IP Holdings LLC
> >
> >IP Holdings LLC is an intellectual property incubator with a focus on
patent commercialization through licensing and enforcement.  For further
information on IP Holdings, contact IP Holdings LLC, Montebello Park, 75
Montebello Road, Suffern, NY 10901; telephone: (845) 368-4000; or e-mail:
[email-masked].