TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: BlackBerry Maker Urged to Settle Dispute

BlackBerry Maker Urged to Settle Dispute

Monty Solomon (monty@roscom.com)
Wed, 30 Nov 2005 18:48:21 -0500

By STEPHANIE STOUGHTON AP Business Writer

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) -- A federal judge moved a step closer Wednesday to
reissuing an injunction that threatens BlackBerry e-mail service in
this country, placing more pressure on the wireless device's maker,
Research In Motion Ltd., to settle the patent case.

The judge rejected RIM's bid to enforce a preliminary $450 million
settlement reached earlier this year with NTP Inc., a small firm that
has convinced a jury that BlackBerry infringes on its patents for
wireless communication.

In another blow to RIM, U.S. District Judge James R. Spencer turned
down the Canadian company's request to delay the case pending final
word from the U.S. patent office, which has preliminarily rejected
the patents at the heart of the lawsuit.

With those issues out of the way, Spencer next plans to address
damages and, once again, an injunction would force RIM to halt
BlackBerry service in the United States. After a jury decided against
RIM in 2002, Spencer held off on the injunction pending appeals.

Analysts and industry observers say RIM, based in Waterloo, Ontario,
will likely be forced to settle the lawsuit for as much as $1
billion. Still, some also say RIM's hands aren't completely tied; it's
also somewhat unlikely NTP would want to force a shutdown, a scenario
that could leave it with a smaller payoff.

- http://finance.lycos.com/home/news/story.asp?story=53574955

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