The Discovery Channel is suing Amazon over the Kindle for patent infringement, claiming they invented the concept of encrypting a book to be sold digitally over the internet.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know I’m usually the dorky uncle wearing the “I (Heart) David” shirt in the classic David-vs-Goliath fight, but this time, I have to side with the huge corporation (Discovery “only” had $3.4 billion in revenue in 2008 versus Amazon’s $19.2 billion).  I mean, this is as dumb as one company who came up with the absurd notion that they could patent the “one click” checkout and tried to sue their way to the top with it (for the great irony here, visit the aforementioned link to find out who that “one company” was).

Our whole system of patents and trademarks needs a desperate overhaul.  Originally set up to protect innovators and inventors, its now seems more a bizarre Lewis Carroll poem where the antics of great bandersnatches who frumiously beat on another with patentitious periwocks have completely crowded the erstwhile innovator from the stanzas.  Did you know that someone actually received a patent for swinging sideways?

Psst – another irony: Amazon runs Discovery’s online store for them.  That’s going to make for some fun conference calls in Wonderland.