12 July 2010 | Author: D. Warburton Search Copywriter

NTP could succeed in patent suit against Apple, Google, Microsoft

The patent suits filed against all the major players of the smartphone industry last week by NTP, Inc. stands a good chance of being successful, according to one tech blogger.

The patent holder famously sued BlackBerry makers Research In Motion (RIM) in a long-running feud over email technology that came to a head in 2006 when RIM paid $612.5 million, making NTP's presence felt as a serious threat to the smartphone industry.

Last week, NTP made the headlines again with its bold accusation that a number of smartphone makers - including Apple, Google, Microsoft and HTC, among others - were in breach of eight patents owned on wireless email delivery.

"Use of NTP's intellectual property without a license is just plain unfair to NTP and its licensees," said the company's co-founder Donald E Stout in a statement.

"We took the necessary action to protect our intellectual property."

In addition to its patents against smartphone makers, the Wall Street Journal reports that NTP has also issued patent infringement cases against wireless providers including AT&T, T-Mobile USA, Vodafone and Verizon Wireless, which face a full review by the US Patent and Trademark Office.

Although the patent holder has been heavily criticised for its 'patent troll' actions, Larry Dignan of ZDNet believes its chances of succeeding are strong, based on its previous achievements.

"NTP may have some precedent on its side to force the likes of Apple, Google, HTC, LG, Microsoft and Motorola to pay up," he wrote.

Dignan explained that NTP likely waited "so long" after the RIM case to sue the other major players in the industry as it was "waiting to make sure it had a favorable USPTO ruling for its patents."

Following the ruling by the patent appeals body that 67 of its claims in four patents were valid, Dignan believes "NTP now has all the ammo it needs to go after the industry."

However, it remains to be seen whether NTP is capable of taking on the rest of the industry's heavy hitters.

Home | Careers | RSS | Contact Us | Newsletter

International sites: