At 05:06 AM 11/21/96 CST, Alan Pugh wrote:

By KATHLEEN SAMPEY Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK (AP) _ A little-known patent could raise the cost of doing business over the Internet for companies selling software, video or other digital products delivered online.

E-Data Corp. of Secaucus, N.J., is suing 17 companies, including McGraw-Hill and CompuServe, to collect licensing fees on the patent, which protects downloading of encrypted digital information. A court hearing is scheduled Dec. 6 in New York on the company's claims.

Notice, as usual, the Orwellian use of the word "protects" in the paragraph above. While apparently written by a journalist, it echoes the usage of lawyers. Nothing is really being "protected," it is being monopolized. Jim Bell jimbell@pacifier.com