The battle between BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. and patent-holding company NTP Inc. took another strange turn as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office rejected the last of NTP’s patents under re-examination. The patents form the basis for the current legal battle between the two companies.
“The USPTO has now issued initial rulings in the re-examinations of all eight NTP patents relating to the NTP vs. RIM litigation and has rejected 100 percent of the 1,921 claims contained in those patents, including the 16 claims asserted against RIM,” the BlackBerry maker said in a statement.
The re-examinations aren’t final. The patent and trademark office can reverse the decision, and NTP can appeal it.
Although the news was a positive for RIM, the company’s stock dipped slightly on the news to around $68.77 per share. The announcement comes a day after RIM posted slower-than-expected subscriber additions. RIM’s stock is nearing its 52-week low of $60 per share, way below its high of $103 per share. (See story on page 19.)
RIM said the patent and trademark office rejected NTP’s 6,317,592 patent, the last of eight NTP patents under re-examination. During the past few months, the patent and trademark office has been re-examining-and rejecting-NTP’s wireless e-mail patents.
However, it’s unclear how the re-examination process will affect the current court battle between NTP and RIM. Legal observers have said there is no real precedent for such issues. Further clouding the issue is the potential for a settlement between the two companies-RIM and NTP earlier this year announced a $450 million settlement, but the agreement broke down shortly thereafter.
“While it clearly does not hurt RIM that U.S. Patent and Trademark Office rejected NTP’s `592 patent in a first-office action, it is still impossible to predict how much these actions will ultimately benefit RIM’s position in the settlement and/or the case,” wrote Maynard Um with UBS. The firm makes a market in RIM’s securities.
