A patent infringement case between Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM) and Mformation Technologies Inc. has flipped in favor of RIM.
A U.S. District Court judge ruled that RIM has not infringed upon Mformation’s patent, overturning an earlier jury verdict that ordered RIM to pay $147.2 million to Mformation for violating its patent covering a system for remote management of wireless devices.
Mformation can appeal the ruling, but doing so will result in a new trial instead of a return to the jury’s verdict.
“We appreciate the judge’s careful consideration of this case,” Steve Zipperstein, RIM’s chief legal officer, said in an Aug. 9 news release. “RIM did not infringe on Mformation’s patent and we are pleased with this victory.”
Zipperstein added, “The purpose of the patent system is to encourage innovation, but the system is still too often exploited in pursuit of other goals.”
With a declining market share and mass layoffs, RIM can preserve some cash through the overturned ruling as it works toward its delayed BlackBerry 10 (BB10) release. BlackBerry 10, due out in early 2013, is seen as RIM’s best and possibly only chance for a turnaround.
Also on Aug. 9, RIM made its 4G LTE BlackBerry PlayBook tablet available in Canada. The new PlayBook will become available in the United States, Europe, South Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean in the coming months, RIM said in a news release.
