Settlement Agreement Over BlackBerry Patent Collapses

by Glen Shapiro, LawAndTax-News.com, New York

13 June 2005

It emerged last week that the settlement agreement reached between Canadian technology firm, Research in Motion and US patent-holding firm NTP over patented technology crucial to the former's BlackBerry wireless e-mail devices has collapsed.

NTP had argued successfully in several US courts that the function in the devices which automatically receives and displays new e-mail messages without any prompting from the end user represented an infringement of its intellectual property, leading the Canadian government to intervene in the matter on RIM's behalf.

Under the terms of the settlement reached between RIM and NTP in March of this year, the former firm agreed to pay the latter $450 million, in return for which it would be permitted to continue to market the devices without interference.

However, in a brief filed with the US Court of Appeals last week, NTP explained that:

"Unfortunately, it very quickly became evident that the parties had interpreted the vague term sheet in entirely different manners regarding virtually every significant provision."

Responding to the news, RIM called for the matter to be turned over to the District Courts in order that the settlement agreement be enforced.

RIM joint-CEO, Jim Balsillie reportedly professed himself to be "extremely disappointed" by the re-opening of the matter.

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