I read a short article online that discusses how Facebook is “currently facing a copyright lawsuit due to its timeline feature”. Apparently, Facebook’s new timeline feature was based off of a website created in 2009 called Timelines. The case is still being settled and the actual trial is yet to begin. I thought this was a very interesting case because the concept of timelines has been around for a very long time, and so I personally don’t think it is likely that Facebook stole this concept from Timelines to use on their website. It seems more likely to me that Timelines simply wants to make money, and what better a corporation to make if off of than Facebook?
It seems that nowadays, anyone can sue anybody for copyright infringement off an idea that they thought was their own. However, not everyone’s idea is an original, but that doesn’t mean that they stole it from somebody else, it simply means that two different people may have independently had the same idea. People refuse to believe that, or are simply using that to make money.
It is funny to think of something like the idea of a timeline being acceptable to sue over. Honestly, I believe the Timelines corporation suing Facebook is just an example of someone suing just to try and make money.
I agree they are definitely doing it for the money but watching your idea fail and then seeing a billionaire benefit from a similar idea? id be pretty pissed too