It?s been relatively quiet on Apple?s patent battlefront, but this week the CEO of Eastman Kodak spoke out on his company?s dispute against Cupertino and BlackBerry maker Research in Motion over digital camera technology, claiming the suit could produce upwards of $1 billion in royalties if they win.
AppleInsider is reporting on the latest in Eastman Kodak?s patent dispute with Apple Inc. and Research in Motion. Kodak claims both companies have violated patents held by the imaging giant over digital camera technology used in their mobile devices, apparently valued at ?more than $1 billion? in lost royalty payments.
In an interview Thursday with Bloomberg, Kodak CEO Antonio Perez claimed that his company ?deserves to win.? The interview came a day before the International Trade Commission is scheduled to announce on Friday whether or not it will review an earlier ruling claiming that Apple and RIM are not in violation of Kodak?s image preview patents.
Eastman Kodak?s patent suit stretches back to January of last year, with the company claiming that Apple?s iPhone ?infringed on patents relating to low resolution image previews.? Apple shot back a few months later with a patent suit of their own, claiming Kodak?s cameras were violating imaging patents of their own.
Korean consumer electronics giants Samsung and LG have both paid out to Kodak as part of a settlement over the same patent to the tune of nearly $1 billion. ?This is a lot of money, big money,? Perez said in reference to a potential settlement with Apple and RIM. In the case of Samsung and LG, a different ITC judge sided with Kodak, which lead to a settlement before the trade commission could rule.
As AppleInsider notes, the ITC has no authority to order monetary damages, but it can move to block importing products found to violate U.S. patents. ?As such, the threat of an import ban often motivates companies to settle,? the report reveals.
In January of this year, an ITC judge ruled in favor of defendants Apple and RIM, claiming that Kodak?s patent was an ?obvious variation of an earlier invention.? With the legendary company having lost nearly half of its market value in recent years, Kodak is looking to its patent portfolio for its next big payday.
Follow this article?s author, J.R. Bookwalter on Twitter
Source: http://www.maclife.com/article/news/kodak_patent_dispute_apple_could_be_worth_1_billion_or_more
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