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VIZIO looks to FCC to slap Funai's hand
Whoa, Nelly. Looks like we've got ourselves an old fashioned paper fight going on here. Just days after VIZIO filed an antitrust lawsuit against Funai, the former company has now taken things a step further by requesting that the FCC require Funai to "comply with patent licensing conditions imposed by the FCC when it adopted the digital television standards for the United States." Additionally, VIZIO has asked the entity to "order Funai to cease its unreasonable and discriminatory patent enforcement policies while the FCC considers a pending petition for declaratory ruling." There's no word on whether the FCC is open to oblige, but you can rest assured that there are more than a few bitter-beer faces clogging up corner offices at Funai Electronics.
VIZIO files antitrust and unfair competition lawsuit against Funai
Aw, snap! Just months after Funai took the reins from Philips in North America, along comes a lawsuit for its lawyers to deal with. VIZIO, still feeling proud after its all-business Super Bowl ad, has thrown a potent antitrust and unfair competition lawsuit in Funai's direction. The outfit alleges that Funai, "acting alone and in concert with others, unlawfully restrained trade and monopolized the market for the licensing of technology used to interpret and retrieve information from a digital television broadcast signal, as well as the market for digital television sets and receivers." Specifically, VIZIO seems perturbed that Funai inappropriately acquired the rights to one single US patent, and ever since it has "unfairly discriminated against VIZIO in the licensing and enforcement" of said patent to the "detriment of trade and commerce." There's no mention of how many bills VIZIO thinks will fix the problem, but Funai better not try filling stacks of hundies with Washingtons in between.[Image courtesy of TooMuchNick / WireImage]
Netflix and Walmart sued over online movie rentals
Industry big shots Walmart and Netflix have both been named in a consumer lawsuit which accuses them of "trying to build a monopoly for online DVD rentals." The complaint, which was filed by San Francisco-based Andrea Resnick in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges that both firms "unreasonably restrained trade, sending up prices." As the story goes, the duo decided back in 2005 that Wally World would shut down its online rental business and refer those customers to Netflix, and the plaintiffs allege that these actions would end up promoting Walmart's DVD movie sales. Netflix spokespeople declined to comment, though Walmart spokeswoman Daphne Moore did acknowledge that it had received the gripe and would respond to the court at the appropriate time.
Sharp, LG to pay big fines for LCD price fixing
There may have been a long shot in Hades that Sharp and LG would navigate their way out of paying a full $120 million / $400 million fine for their respective roles in a recent LCD price fixing bust, but that shot has apparently failed. It was announced this week that both firms would indeed be sentenced to pay the full fine "for their role in a price-fixing scheme that forced millions of US consumers to overpay for gadgets using liquid-crystal displays." The other culprit, Taiwan's Chunghwa Picture Tubes, has already agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges and will be sentenced in January. Happy holidays, huh?
Breakfast Topic: Are private servers really that bad?
Blizzard has a very clear line on private servers: they are against the rules. If you have one or play on one you're going to get in trouble. Your account will get shut down and you'll likely face some legal issues if you don't capitulate to their demands.However is their stance right? Are private servers really that big of a deal?There are two ways that I look at the issue. One way is to view the issue through the lens of morality and legalese. In this respect Blizzard is on solid ground. They own Warcraft and all the associated games, and they own the servers we play on. When we buy the game we're not buying the property. We're buying the right to use the property as long as we keep paying a monthly fee, and as long as we operate within their guidelines (the terms of service).Some might contend that there is an innate right to privacy in the fact that after we've purchased the game (and its associated data), Blizzard has no right to tell us what to do with it or to find out how we're using it. I'm not a lawyer, but some are, and there's an interesting debate to be had here.
Buffalo's wireless injunction stayed, now free to sell WiFi products in US
Man, we can bet there's some serious celebrating going on at the Buffalo offices today. After being barred from selling its networking gear here in America last June, Buffalo has finally been freed from its CSIRO-given chains. Who's to thank? A federal judge who has stayed the permanent injunction in the ongoing US patent litigation, which opens the doors for the company to sell "IEEE 802.11a, 802.11g and 802.11n compliant products in the United States." Finally, we USers can look forward to buying helicopter inspired routers on our home turf.[Thanks, Mark]
Canon cleared to resume work on SED TV (now that the world doesn't care)
We're hard pressed to think of a display-related story that has lingered on longer than SED (well over four years at last count), and believe it or not, this still isn't apt to be the last you hear of it. If you'll recall, Canon recently declared victory after winning a lawsuit against Applied Nanotech that was previously holding it back from making progress, and now Applied Nanotech has waved the final white flag by giving up its right to appeal. Comically enough, it may actually be too late for Canon to even salvage the win, with president Tsuneji Uchida noting that "at times like this, new display products are not introduced much because people would laugh at them." Shh... nobody tell him the world's been laughing at SED for years.[Via OLED-Display]
TWC sues AT&T in Texas, claims it damaged equipment when deploying U-verse
Whoa boy, this could get nasty. Cable giant Time Warner Cable has brought out the legal team against rival AT&T in Western Texas, where it alleges that the latter company "destroyed and misappropriated cable company equipment when it rolled out its U-verse video service." By way of "sheer acts of vandalism, trespass, conversion and misappropriation of Time Warner's property," TWC says that AT&T actually marred some of its network, though spokespeople for both outfits didn't really have anything juicy to say on the matter. Analysts in the space have been quick to point out that these type lawsuits have been common for the better part of a decade, and in 2006, AT&T actually sued Time Warner Cable as it alleged that "its technicians illegally damaged its network when hooking up phone customers in apartment buildings." Wouldn't the world be a better place without this litigation and with lower prices for all? We say "yes." [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family][Via Broadband Reports, thanks Anthony]
Samsung settles up with InterDigital in long-running patent infringement case
At last, it's over. InterDigital, which is best known for its episodes in the courtroom with Samsung and Nokia, has finally reached an agreement with the former firm. The two have been at each other's throats since April of last year regarding patents allegedly used in some of Sammy's more sophisticated phones. The decision was reached just a day before the US International Trade Commission was set to rule on whether to recommend barring affected Samsung imports altogether, which we can assure you was not at all coincidental. There's been no public disclosure of settlement value, though one analyst at Hilliard Lyons estimates that Samsung will be coughing up $400 to $500 million over the next five years to make this problem go away. Talk about a recurring nightmare.
Lawsuit whirligig: Spansion and Kodak sue Samsung, LG sued only by Kodak
Mark it down as a coincidence if you'd like, but a flurry of lawsuits revolving around the same companies just became public knowledge. For starters, Eastman Kodak has decided to sue Samsung and LG, alleging infringement of digital camera patents relating to image capture, compression and data storage; the suit is asking for "unspecified damages, and both cases seek injunctions prohibiting Samsung and LG from further imports and sales of the products." Just hours later, Samsung hit back with this response: "Samsung plans to respond actively to these litigations and will remain committed to serving our customers by ensuring that accurate and reliable delivery of our products is not compromised in any way." Got all that? Good. Moving on, we've also got chipmaker Spansion tossing a suit in Samsung's direction, which is asking for "billions" in damages for patent infringement presumably related to flash memory. Who says it's a slow period in the courtroom?Read - Kodak sues Samsung / LGRead - Samsung's reply to lawsuitsRead - Spansion sues Samsung
Sprint now facing $1.2 billion class-action suit over early termination fees
We told you it wasn't over, and now, that once "manageable" $73 million payment could possibly balloon to upwards of $1.2 billion. As predicted, the prior suit -- which was held in a California state court -- has led to a far reaching class-action lawsuit that could "potentially cost the company as much as $1.2 billion." The suit alleges that the $150 to $200 fees violated the Federal Communications Act and laws in every state of the country, and when summed from 1999 to 2008, they total a magical $1.2 billion. Things aren't looking great for Sprint on this one either, as lawyer Scott Bursor is running the show. Who's he? Just a guy who was involved in getting Verizon to fork over $21 million for the same thing earlier this year.[Via textually]
Jonathan Lee Riches has a better imagination than you, sues Blizzard
A man sitting in a South Carolina prison serving time for wire fraud has decided to file a third-party motion in the MDY v. Blizzard. Jonathan Riches is accusing Blizzard of "...causing [me] to live in a virtual universe, where [I] explored the landscape committing identity theft and fighting cybermonster rival hacker gangs."I probably don't need to say anything else, and he probably doesn't either. I'm pretty sure most judges would just throw the motion out right there. But, the motion continues..."Riches was addicted to video games and lost touch with reality because of [Blizzard]. This caused Riches to commit fraud to buy [Blizzard's] video games. Riches chose World of Warcraft over working a legit job. Riches mind became a living video game."Wow. Just wow. Is that all that bad? I would love to live my life as a video game. Maybe one day my girlfriend will show up as an Eredar Twin or Pirate. That wouldn't be so bad. Or perhaps she'll be riding around on a giant turtle. With pink elephants.He has also sued the Eiffel Tower, and lost.
Pioneer wins plasma patent case over Samsung, awarded $59.3 million
Pioneer may be licking its wounds, but at least there's one bright spot on an otherwise dark end-of-year. The US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas in Marshall (read: patent troll heaven) recently found that "Samsung willfully infringed two Pioneer patents covering plasma display technology," leading to a settlement which involves Samsung handing Pioneer a check for $59,351,480. Samsung has yet to comment on the ruling, but it's pretty easy to imagine what it's probably thinking, wouldn't you say?[Via SmartHouse, thanks Anthony]
Verizon caves, settles Klausner visual voicemail suit by signing license
We figured back in August that Verizon (and LG) would eventually be forced to pay up in order to keep visual voicemail on its handsets, and sure enough, that's exactly what has gone down with the former company. Verizon and Klausner Technologies have quickly settled outstanding patent litigation by way of Verizon entering into a patent license agreement for using visual voicemail. To date, Verizon is the 15th company to ink such an agreement, ensuring that the suits at Klausner can remain firmly parked in Grand Cayman, Aruba, Maui or any other blissful location they please for the remainder of their Earthly lives. As for LG? We'd say the outcome is all but imminent at this point.[Via phonescoop, image courtesy of MyDigitalLife]
Apple and Psystar to settle things with alternative dispute resolution, not tridents and hatchets
As much as we were hoping to see Steve Jobs and... well, anyone from Psystar settle things in the squared circle, we suppose we'll have to live with a much more peaceful end to this madness. Rather than spending wads of cash on lawyers for no good reason, the two outfits have agreed to use alternative dispute resolution in order to wrap this scuffle up and move forward. As you may know, ADR is a private process where both parties meet outside of a trial in order to reach some sort of agreement, though we imagine the outcome will be pretty public depending on Psystar's ability / inability to continue fulfilling orders. We're told that the process will get going before February of 2009, and the full fling (PDF) with the US district court in the Northern District of California is linked below if you've suddenly found yourself with entirely too much free time.[Via The Mac Observer]
NVIDIA details settlement for price fixing fiasco
Way back in December of 2006, NVIDIA and AMD were both pegged for potential price fixing, and nearly two years later it seems it'll finally be paying the piper. A settlement agreement is detailed in a recently filed 8-K form, which asserts that NVIDIA would pay $850,000 into a total fund of up to $1.7 million, with AMD / ATI probably left to make up the rest. Of note, the 8-K filing does mention that all of this is still "subject to court approval," but it's likely that the green light will eventually be given. Outside of that, we're also informed that NVIDIA will be handing over $112,500 to the individual plaintiffs who brought the case to court. Well, we're glad that's settled.[Via CustomPC]
US Appeals court sez Qualcomm infringed on two Broadcom patents
We could start off by telling you just how much this decision will hurt Qualcomm and just how celebratory the mood must be at Broadcom, but instead, we'll key you in on this quote: "The appeals court also rejected Qualcomm's request for a new trial." At long last, we may have actually heard the end of what has seemed like a never-ending battle between the aforementioned parties. Today, a US Appeals court upheld an earlier ruling that Qualcomm had indeed infringed upon two Broadcom patents while ruling that a third patent in question was invalid. The ruling is obviously a huge win for Broadcom, who will soon be bathing in Benjamins as Qualcomm is forced to pay mandatory royalties for the chips it sells during the "sunset period" ending January 31, 2009.[Via Reuters]
Timberland and GSI cough up $7 million to settle text spam lawsuit
Not that we haven't seen victories over SMS spammers before, but this one is sure catching a lot of attention due to the names attached. GSI Commerce and Timberland have reportedly agreed to "establish a fund of up to $7 million to settle a class-action lawsuit brought against them for allegedly sending unsolicited text messages to wireless telephone users in violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act." The settlement has already received preliminary approval from a judge in the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division, and while the aforementioned firms vehemently deny any wrongdoing, they concede that taking this to court would be "burdensome, protracted and expensive." More expensive than $7 million? Is that guilt we smell, or what?[Via mocoNews]
Charter ruffling feathers in Reno, NV / McDowell, NC
Why does it seem that Charter, out of all the cable carriers in the world, finds itself intertwined with so much mischief? The latest forehead-pounding episode is actually a two-fer, with gripes arising from Reno, Nevada and a rural section of North Carolina. In the Silver State, Charter is apparently looking to pull four public access channels to retrieve bandwidth for the launch of 12 new digital channels. The company's George Jostlin proclaims that the "majority of consumers are calling it on a daily basis and asking for more HD / digital programming," but the City of Reno has announced its intentions to sue the provider if an agreement can't be reached on the matter by next Wednesday. Across the country in McDowell County, NC, Charter is catching flack for wanting to strip Marion of its information channel (and combine it with the county's government channel) in order to add three HD stations. We like the intentions here, but seriously, you folks should work on the execution. [Thanks PopWeaverHDTV, image courtesy of TSLPL]Read - Issues in RenoRead - Stirring the pot in rural NC
Digital Security Systems files patent infringement suit against major Blu-ray players
We've witnessed a few lawsuits related to Blu-ray, but this is the first one we can recall that perfectly fits the "patent troll" mold. The Patent Prospector has it that Acacia subsidiary Digital Security Systems is suing a smorgasbord of big BD players for infringing on a patent that it has held for years. Defendants named include Samsung, Best Buy, Denon, Funai, LG, Matsushita, Panasonic, Philips, Pioneer, and Sharp, though details beyond that are sadly scant. Oh, and if you're wondering where the complaint was filed, it was in the infamous Eastern District of Texas.[Via FormatWarCentral]
