Noted patent holding firm Intellectual Ventures has filed a new suit targeting AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint in regards to 14 unspecified patents that the firm claims are being infringed upon by the three named carriers. The patent holding firm is seeking unspecified damages for the infringements and their counsel has issued the following statement regarding the recently filed litigation:
“The wireless communications networks of AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile use a variety of important technologies covered by Intellectual Ventures’ patents. We previously attempted to discuss licensing options with each of these companies, but none were responsive. We filed a complaint for infringement today in the U.S. District Court of Delaware to get these three companies on a course toward compensating IV for the value of the inventions they use in delivering their wireless services.”
As the patents in question have not been disclosed, the likelihood of the patents being valid remains an open question as firms such as Intellectual Ventures realize the majority of their revenue by filing claims on overly broad patents which typically have little to do with the technology they supposedly cover, to the point that they are typically invalidated. With the latest suit, the company is likely looking for quick settlements from the carriers rather than protracted litigation.
As neither carrier has officially responded to the suit, it’s very likely that this morning’s announcement is the first time they were made aware of the new suit and are avoiding making statements until being officially served. Intellectual Ventures has previously filed suits against carriers before and the majority have ended in either quick settlements with license fees paid and even invalidation of patents alleged to be infringed which were found to be overly broad and invalid.
Shouldn’t they be going after the equipment vendors? The carriers are just the users of the equipment!
It’s easier to go after the carriers as they are much larger targets and can draw more publicity rather than going after individual equipment makers. It’s cheaper for carriers to just settle for pennies and get these firms off their backs.