Monthly Archives: March 2010

Great review of LoD by Robert Keahey

With some immodesty, I point to two essay/reviews of “The Laws of Disruption” by strategy and technology consultant Robert Keahey.  In the first, Keahey echoes my view that given the growing intrusion of law into innovation, reliance on legal counsel separate from strategic integration is a dangerous mistake:

I think the book should be required reading for every manager in your corporation who has the authority to make decisions that can potentially place your company at risk of violating any of the laws described above. And I will go even one step further. Given the spread of social media and social networking as a basic tool in just about every company’s supply chain, I think the basics of copyright, patent and trademark protection should be part of every employee’s training.

Robert’s review of the book can be found here.

ECT/Apple and HTC Patent Fight

“Apple’s Patent Attack: This Too May be Overhyped”, E-Commerce Times, Mar. 5, 2010. Larry is quoted in this article on Apple’s patent lawsuit against rival mobile device maker HTC, pointing out that patent protection is only part of what gives the company a competitive advantage in the market. The network effects from the remarkably-successful apps store is worth more, and needs no legal protection to maintain.

CSM/Google in China

“By Standing up to China, Google Returns to its Roots”, The Christian Science Monitor, Mar. 23, 2010. Larry is quoted extensively in this article reviewing Google’s decision to leave mainland China rather than continuing to censor search results. He notes that Google lost little financially in the short term, though left off from the quote was a recognition that company was still in the early stages of investing in what remains a critical future market for Internet services.