Kodak asks bankruptcy court to decide on patent dispute with Apple
Kodak is asking the bankruptcy court to make a decision about an imaging patent that's part of a lawsuit with Apple, says a report in Computerworld. The disputed patent is owned by Kodak and describes a camera that takes high quality stills and lets the user review these images on an LCD. Kodak and Apple have been fighting the case in the Western District Court of New York, but the proceedings stalled after Kodak filed for bankruptcy. Apple recently asked the court to remove this bankruptcy stay and transfer the case to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Kodak, however, is in the process of selling off its assets, including the patent in this lawsuit. Apple claims Kodak should not be allowed to sell its patent portfolio until this dispute has been resolved. If Kodak can convince the Bankruptcy Court to make a decision on the patent, it can sidestep the lawsuit with Apple and sell its patent portfolio to the highest bidder. Though it doesn't have a buyer for its portfolio, online photo company Shutterfly has agreed to pay US$23.8 million for Kodak's online photo services business.
