DOJ begs judge to halt Blackberry shutdown

The US Department of Justice has filed a brief with the judge hearing the RIM/NTP patent dispute case, begging that the court exempt government agencies from a potential shutdown of the Blackberry service later this month. According to the filing, users from 138 government agencies would need to be kept connected; the government also argued that suggestions by NTP that federal employees be filtered out and kept connected could not  "be realistically implemented." One suggestion by the DOJ was for the shutdown to be delayed, but for sales of new Blackberrys to private customers to be halted. An estimated 200,000 Blackberry users work for the government, and the government and RIM have argued that shutting down the service could impact national security. A hearing has been set for February 24, after which the judge may impose an injunction shutting down RIM's service.

[crackberryaddict @ Feb 20th 2006 3:01PM]

I myself am a new Blackberry user since Jan. with Verizon. I switched over from a Treo650 w/ Cingular, even though RIM is in the lawsuit and let me just tell you Blackberry's just WORK. They don't crash you don't have to pay extra for pushed email or have 3rd party products. My problem with NTP suing is partly that PUSH email is now the standard in the world. Get it as it's sent and thankfully it looks like the patent department is seeing this and knows you can't monopolize a technology. Also as a member of a law enfrocement organization I cannot tell you how many Officers use a Blackberry, I'd have to say over half the force/staff.

[Scott @ Feb 2nd 2006 9:55AM]

What happens if RIM thumbs their nose at the injunction and continues to operate illegally until the USPO makes all the patent invalidations final? So they get fined a $1M a day till it happens. I've heard that the invalidations become final sometime in June. That's roughly 90 days. That's a $90M fine, far less than the settlement with NTP.

[narco @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:08AM]

Time to get some Treos in that mug.

Fishes,
narco.

[Peter @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:09AM]

Sorry, but I have NO sympathy for the DOJ. This is exactly the type of thing that needs to happen so that someone actually steps up and says the whole patent/money grabbing/patent sitting issue is a mess.

However, back to reality... the DOJ will probably get its way and there will still be no resolutions to the screwed-up patent system in the United States.

[Matthew @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:09AM]

Does anybody else see a problem with tieing national security so much to one vendor's product/service?

[khamel @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:10AM]

isn't the fact that national security is effected by the actions of basically a cellphone company scary for anyone else? the hamster in osama's head is running at full speed now.

[Zack @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:13AM]

200,000 goverment agencies but what about all the business men/woman and tv and movie executives,there would be mass histeria....might as well make it a national holiday

[TEN @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:16AM]

This is BS. What did they do before blackberry? While the lawsuit may be pseudo-ridiculouso... DOJ begging for its own business purposes is just more of the "we're government and can have whatever we want" nonsense.

[Jack Slice @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:31AM]

RIM is not innocent in all this. Yes, NTP is patent trolling this but RIM screwed up in their first court case.

Of more concern to me is the ability to "shut off" a communication system that our government relies upon. That implies a potential single point of failure. I'm sure Al Qaeda loves those scenarios.

[EatingPie @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:32AM]

#3 - That assumes Osama reads or cares about this kinda stuff (while living in his luxurious central-asia cave). Everytime we hear mention of this, it's "oh no Osama is gonna have a field day."

We really need to shed the "OSAMA IS OMNIPOTENT" myth.

Now, blowing out communications? Damn right that's bad. Hence us targeting Iraqi communications towers right off the bat during Desert Storm. No communications, no orders.

OTOH, the shutdown impacting national security? Depends on how you define "impact." It'll *slow down* some communication. But somehow I just believe that the military, police, firemen and other such agencies -- the ones we depend on in a pinch -- use something other than Blackberries.

-Pie

[chrwei @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:34AM]

And while we're at it, lets add new legislation that agencies that affect national security cannot use any technology that is patented unless that agency own the patent. have we forgotten "of the people, by the people, for the people"? why the bloody stump are we using technology to run the country that "the poeple" don't "own"? just doens't make any good sence.

[iceberg @ Feb 2nd 2006 10:35AM]

I'm sorry, but what is good for the goose ought to be good for the gander too.

I'm 100% anti-IP laws, and this court case is the perfect example of what IP laws actually accomplish- the opposite of what it was set out to do.

See my blog to see why I.P. laws ought to be abolished.

[PEZ @ Feb 2nd 2006 12:04PM]

Haha.. government fighting the justice system.

Too funny. Im sure this judge, was appointed in some way shape or form, by the current administration.

This shouldnt take too long.

[ax7 @ Feb 2nd 2006 12:32PM]

Did anyone else notice that it says national secutity?

secutity! yah!

[Subliminal Fusion @ Feb 2nd 2006 12:36PM]

I'll admit that I don't understand all the ins and outs of the laws surrounding this issue, but why on earth would the judge move forward with this at this point (considering that the final NTP patent connected to this case was ruled invalid). Even if the invalidation won't become official for 90 days or whatever, shouldn't that alone be enough to halt the trial or at least postpone the case? On the one hand I'd love to see this ruling go through and lead to sweeping patent/I.P. reform, but I also don't want to see RIM suffer because of the current backwards system. Hopefully we'll get both.

[Nick @ Feb 2nd 2006 1:46PM]

How about all of us who sell BlackBerry's file a nice class-action lawsuit against NTP for lost wages? Where I am, I don't sell Treo's unless specifically required because they restart constantly, which I'm told is more of a network integration issue than a device issue. If my customers want easy email, they get a BlackBerry and I get paid well.

[jared @ Feb 2nd 2006 2:22PM]

IMHO, the DoJ action is not really about national security. It's about opening enough of a loophole to keep RIM operational until the relevant patents are officially invalidated, because they recognize the situation is bullshit. I mean, have you heard of a government action initiated in the last 5 years that _wasn't_ budgeted under "national security"?

[Bob @ Feb 2nd 2006 2:25PM]

How about blackberry just pay the royalities and get on with life?

[Adam @ Feb 2nd 2006 2:36PM]

Messaging and Security Feature Pack equipped Windows Mobile 5 device would work in place of the blackberry. No expensive middleware required either.

[tjc @ Feb 2nd 2006 2:37PM]

I haven't read the DOJ brief, but it seems to me that the judge cannot order an injunction that covers the federal government. US Code, Title 28, Section 1498 says:

"Whenever an invention described in and covered by a patent of the United States is used or manufactured by or for the United States without license of the owner thereof or lawful right to use or manufacture the same, the owner�s remedy shall be by action . . . for the recovery of his reasonable and entire compensation for such use and manufacture.... For the purposes of this section, the use or manufacture of an invention described in and covered by a patent of the United States by a contractor, a subcontractor, or any person, firm, or corporation for the Government and with the authorization or consent of the Government, shall be construed as use or manufacture for the United States."

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/search/display.html?terms=patent&url=/uscode/html/uscode28/usc_sec_28_00001498----000-.html

That means, no injunction, just a claim for money damages.

[tjc @ Feb 2nd 2006 2:40PM]

Lemme try that U.S. Code URL again, it seems to have been munged.

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/search/display.html?terms=patent&url=/uscode/html/uscode28/usc_sec_28_00001498----000-.html

or

http://makeashorterlink.com/?B3A84229C

[Mark Fox @ Feb 2nd 2006 2:49PM]

Could the Dept of Defense or Dept of Homeland Security tell the judge that US national security depends on their personnel's BlackBerries to be able to receive email?

[Tracy In Cary @ Feb 2nd 2006 2:54PM]

Hey I'm one of those feds (USEPA) with one of those blackberrys (7750), so I can respond to a few few comments above.

1. Everyone loves to claim "national security" these days, but short of FEMA I see little problem with the gov't losing BB service. As TEN said, we got by without them for decades.

2. As to a gov't having devices we don't have patents to: We're bound by law to be "wise stewards" of YOUR money. That's why we keep talking every few years aboug going Linux and OpenOffice for all our PCs. But there has yet to be sufficient cost savings to make the jump here.

3. Khamel: As for limiting ourselves to ONE specific device: It's hard to explain but the IT providers of "enterprise" email will only allow us to use BBs for agency email. They run the mail gateway and firewall, so they have the power to make that decision. And getting those kinds of decisions reversed is a multi-year process. They used to run a multi-platform server as well, but BBs became so popular the other server had maybe a dozen users and the BB server had hundreds. It was just a waste of resources to keep running it.

Many people here seem convinced the Gov't will be exempt but I have doubts. But if it does happen that would be great. Then I can go hang out with my techno-nerd friends who have BBs from their companies and say "Hold that thought... I'm getting an email!"

[Dan @ Feb 2nd 2006 3:05PM]

RIM's website states that on Feb 1, 2006, all the claims by NTP have been rejected by the patent office as of a re-examination. So this article is a little obsolete.

[tjc @ Feb 2nd 2006 3:40PM]

"RIM's website states that on Feb 1, 2006, all the claims by NTP have been rejected by the patent office as of a re-examination."

Those are non-final rejections. The patents all still remain in force. The sequence from here is that NTP presents its arguments why the non-final rejections are in error, or amends its claims to traverse the rejection; if the PTO still disagrees, it issues final rejections, which NTP can appeal; and finally, the PTO cancels the patents.

Until the patents are cancelled, the already-issued patents remain valid and in force, and the District Court retains jurisdiction over the case.

[needcaffeine @ Feb 2nd 2006 4:21PM]

couple of things...
1) RIM doesn't keep a list of BB PINS/ESN's because that would infringe on security Issues.[imagine the consequences if someone stole that info]{the time to implement a shutdown would take Nx1 months]

2) Palm and Good technology use similar technologies, and are also in court on them, but as they not as popular in the press they don't get the airtime. [plus they don't have the same amount of money]

I'll keep quiet on my opinions, but will mention I am a BB user have have been since '95. The palm is too bulky(the handspring was smaller) and till recently wasn't instant email(it queried the server); the good didn't do GSM{may now?}(needed for our world wide users).

[needcaffeine @ Feb 2nd 2006 4:26PM]

Forgot to mention....
Also because of the BB, many companies/people were saved during 9/11. And although those people/companies may not be considered 'Govt/National Security,' the fact that a majority of the US economy and the world economy runs out of NYC would have meant a major global economy meltdown.

[FunStuff @ Feb 2nd 2006 5:32PM]

I can tell you why the gov't (at least the DoD) is limited to BlackBerry...encryption. For whatever reason, competitors don't have sufficient encryption. Which is why everyone uses RIM products despite the fact that it is a foreign (Canadian) company. Maybe that has changed, but in 2003 when I was doing my thesis on a multi-billion DoD enterprise IT project, that is what I was told by the project manager.

[Andrew @ Feb 2nd 2006 7:09PM]

What is the big deal with RIM being Canadian? Last time I checked, Canada was a member of NATO, Canada was a member of NORAD and Canada is playing a big role in Afghanastan.

As for the security issues, RIM had smart marketing, the products work (I use my BB over my treo anyway - MUCH better beyboard) and it has a cool name.

Getting the US Government hooked on your device is a great way to ensure that the nasty courts will never screw you. Imagine how long it would take a superior court to overrule the injunction on the DoJ's request.

[Firegryphon @ Feb 2nd 2006 8:41PM]

I think the reason that it being any foreign company (even Canadian) is the requirement that good relations are retained. I know that last year I wanted to get a pretty simple file conversion software that would allow me to turn one type of 3d file into another, but my company, whom has a large number of gov't contracts, told me in no uncertain terms "NO!".

[Rick @ Feb 2nd 2006 11:28PM]

Since when is the Department of Justice above the law?? That is the problem with the government and especially the Department of Justice - they are not above the law and they should be accountable just like everyone else is the country. The problem is if they just told the truth to begin with instead of trying to put another notch in their belt at the expense of others.

[MajorDad1984 @ Feb 3rd 2006 9:19AM]

That's quite a stretch...that national security will be compromised if the Blackberry's stay on the air. Laughable actually!

There's a huge gap between being inconvenienced and placing the nation open for attack. Maybe people just need to start thinking NOW about what the contingency plans will be IF the service goes south.

I hardly think we'd find some young soldier whose M4 carbine jammed in the middle of a firefight say, "Oh well, this thing's jammed. Time to surrender." Why would the government place all their hopes on the back of a court?

See ya on the high ground...

MajorDad1984

[jeffinToronto @ Feb 3rd 2006 11:10AM]

I hope that people realize that if RIM was an American company, none of this mess would have happened. When you have NTP (American) trolling for patents and RIM (Candian)gets in front of a U.S. court, they took the American company's side. If RIM was U.S. and NTP was a Korean company, this whole case would have been just a blip on a RIM press release that stated "court case dismissed as without merit".