Hello,

I run a website www.freevideocodes.com which provides free html code to stream live media onto a users blog, MySpace, Xanga, or whatever the user wants. The codes are provided 100% for free

I have been contact by musicvideocodes.com saying that the html code to stream music codes across the internet is patent pending and thy own exclusive rights to the html code. They are trying to shut me down saying that it would be illegal for me to provide the html code to stream music videos onto another persons website or blog, and that they patented that idea! Is this possible??

When I tried to ask the owner how they can patent html code, they said that they are not patenting the html code, but the idea to stream music videos on end users websites such as Xanga, MySpace, or any blog. They also said that they are hosting all 2,800 music videos on their website, and yet they are really hot linking to many other websites.

It just doesn’t seem right to me. I want to patent the idea to use html codes to display images on the internet, then I can shut down all 20 trillion websites that display an image in html on their website???

Any ideas on this issue? Can they really patent the idea to stream media on the idea and become a monopoly?

While the patent is pending, they have no rights to do anything, at all. You could infact write a just as ánal retentive email back, saying that while patent is pending they have no rights, any further communication will result in action being taken against you for harassment and frivolous legal threats. The US law on Patent permits that it is illegal to use the term Patent Pending in the wrong way, and companies can be fined heavily for using it to decieve the public.

Most patents are published 18 Months after application, and any member of the public can request a copy of the patent application (just to check it's real).

But let's make this clear, Patent Pending does not "really" exist, the Patent won't exist until it exists! Besides, I doubt any patent will be given that infringes an idea already created, or a patent that will hinder the development of future sites that can benefit the Internet community.

Please follow my adivce carefully and don't take it as a life lesson for now, email them back asking when they filed the patent application, under which jurisdiction and the name or company it was filed under, that way you can search for it at a later date. Also tell them to take a look at these website about patent pending:

The Patent Place
USLegalForm.com

Hope that helps, and also remind them about OpenSource, and insult them with a yo-mama line.

Thank you soo much. I have sent another email to the site owner asking for this information, am curious if he will respond.