Ads by TechWords

See your link here
Receive the latest technology news and information.
Mobile/Wireless Computing
Computerworld Daily News (First Look and Wrap-Up)
Computerworld Blogs Newsletter
The Weekly Top 10
Cloud Computing
View all newsletters




Privacy Policy
 

Proposed RIM, NTP settlement not a done deal

RIM wants an appeals court to enforce the $450M agreement

June 10, 2005 12:00 PM ET

IDG News Service - The proposed settlement between Research In Motion Ltd. and NTP Inc. hit a snag yesterday as RIM filed a motion asking an appeals court to enforce the terms of the $450 million agreement.
NTP holds patents that it believes are infringed by RIM's popular BlackBerry wireless e-mail service and devices. In 2002, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia agreed with NTP and found that RIM willingly violated those patents. While the matter was under appeal earlier this year, the companies appeared to settle their dispute after RIM agreed to pay NTP $450 million and work out the terms of a licensing agreement.
However, a definitive agreement was never reached. RIM believes that the March settlement grants it a perpetual license to NTP's patents and the right to continue doing business without interference from NTP, it said in a statement.
"We believe the term sheet is explicit and clear," Jim Balsillie, chairman and co-CEO of RIM, said during a conference call yesterday. "We are disappointed this matter is still open."
NTP, on the other hand, contends that RIM is just stalling for time with its current motion, believing that continued legal appeals are better than paying the $450 million or facing a possible injunction on its products, according to documents filed by NTP with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
Both parties want the appeals court to remand the case to the Virginia court for enforcement of the settlement.
RIM's BlackBerry devices, popular with business executives and e-mail fans, allow users to get their corporate e-mail wirelessly delivered to a handheld device rather than having to access a corporate network to check for messages.
NTP believes its patents cover all aspects of a wireless e-mail delivery system like the BlackBerry, it said during its patent dispute with RIM. RIM's rival Good Technology Inc. and mobile phone maker Nokia Corp. have signed license agreements with NTP.


Reprinted with permission from

IDG.net
Story copyright 2009 International Data Group. All rights reserved.

Jump to comments

Mobile/Wireless

Additional Resources

WHITE PAPER
Approximately 60 percent of data migration projects overrun time or budget, while some fail completely. Download this white paper, "Enhancing Your Chance for Successful Data Migration," to learn the critical steps you need to take to execute a data migration project with minimum cost and risk to your business.
WHITE PAPER
Read the Gartner research note to learn why the TCO of a server-based computing deployment used to deliver all applications to users is around 50% lower than that of an unmanaged desktop deployment.
WHITE PAPER
Economic downturns have a tendency to accelerate emerging technologies, boost the adoption of effective solutions, and punish solutions that are not cost competitive or that are out of synch with industry trends. This IDC White Paper presents the results of an IDC survey of 330 companies in Western Europe, Asia/Pacific and the Americas that measures the receptiveness to Linux and takes into consideration changing views driven by the disruptive economic environment that businesses face today.

White Papers & Webcasts

Streamline Your Business with Innovative Tools
Download This White Paper Now!  

Inquiry Insights: Enterprise Mobility, Q1 2009
Learn what Forrester has uncovered in their latest report on Enteprise Mobility trends.  

Comparing Research In Motion and Microsoft Mobile Solutions
This paper compares the Research In Motion BlackBerry solution with the Microsoft® mobile solution by analyzing features of the user experience and the...  

The Commercialization of ITIL: Lessons Learned
Register for this event today!