Introduction to the Claim
Actor Terrence Howard recently appeared on the podcast "The Joe Rogan Experience" and made a surprising claim. He stated that he holds multiple patents, including the primary one for augmented and virtual reality technology. However, is that this claim true?
The Patent Application
In 2010, Howard did file a patent application related to augmented and virtual reality technology. The application, titled "World of Windows," was for a system that merges virtual reality with real-world sensory experiences. However, in 2013, this application was abandoned prior to being approved, which implies Howard was ultimately not granted a patent for this technology.
What Howard Said
On the podcast, Howard told Rogan that he paid $260,000 for the worldwide patent but abandoned it as a consequence of maintenance fees and annuities. He claimed that his patent application was the premise for your entire AR/VR world and that corporations reminiscent of Sony, Microsoft, and IBM have cited his patent in their very own applications. Howard also expressed regret over not pursuing the patent further, as he believed it had significant financial potential.
The Truth About Patents
Filing a patent application is different from holding a patent. When you file for a patent, it’s a proper submission to a government authority in search of exclusive territorial rights to an invention. However, the act of filing does not imply the applicant robotically gets those rights. A patent examiner must audit the applying to see if the invention meets certain rules, evaluating for novelty, non-obviousness, and usefulness.
What Happened to Howard’s Patent
Howard’s patent application was assigned a tracking identifier, and he received a publication number. However, he never received a singular patent number signifying the patent was granted because he abandoned the patent in 2013. He claimed that the patent has earned over $7 trillion, but he hasn’t received any money from it.
Conclusion
In conclusion, while Terrence Howard did file a patent application related to augmented and virtual reality technology, he was not granted a patent as a consequence of abandoning the applying in 2013. His claim of holding the primary patent for AR/VR technology is just not entirely accurate. It’s essential to grasp the difference between filing a patent application and holding a patent, in addition to the method involved in granting patents. Howard’s story serves as a reminder that having an idea or invention is just step one, and pursuing and protecting it’s crucial to reaping its advantages.
