iPod is typical of successful product technologies created from a flurry of patents. Cell phones are another prime example. For manufacturers with patents, cross-licenses transpire, and maybe money changes hands. Not to mention, for what it's worth, bragging rights. For inventors that are not manufacturers, money changes hands. Assuming the patents are valid. It's the hum of the engine of competitive innovation. And that's nothing but good news, at least for those successfully playing the patent game, and for the consumers who benefit from the innovation.