In a surprise announcement, the US Patent and Trademark Office has granted Apple a Siri-related patent that covers conversational speech. Patent 990,225,666 - dubbed the '666 patent - covers common grammatical structures for questions and statements used in conversational communication.
We reached out to Apple for comment and were immediately issued an injunction for violating the '666 patent. They did respond, however:
"We realize the broader societal implications of this patent. However, we strongly feel that this technology is not standards-essential and we will not be licensing it under FRAND terms. We fully intend to allow users of Apple products to continue to communicate with each other and with Siri as they do today. For others, we can recommend several iBooks on topics ranging from grunting, to cave drawing, hieroglyphics, and runes. Please keep in mind that mankind has been communicating for millenia; far longer than communication in its current form has existed."
Shortly after the announcement, Samsung released a prepared statement announcing a new version of their wildly popular Android customization known as TouchWiz. The new version, named "TouchWiz Yoda UX", works around the '666 patent by contorting common grammatical structure like a Cirque du Soliel performer. When asked for a comment, Samsung responded "like Yoda UX, you will. Mmm hmm."
Samsung will be debuting TouchWiz Yoda UX on its upcoming Jelly Bean updates. They have vehemently refused to provide schedules for said updates and have deferred to the carriers. We reached out to multiple carriers who in chorus simply replied "Huh?"
This story is still developing. Stay tuned for updates....maybe...ask the carriers.
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