PS3 Targeted in Blu-ray Suit

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Mountain View, Calif.-based Orinda Intellectual Properties USA has filed suit against Sony, claiming the PS3-maker has infringed on Blu-ray-related patents.

In an August 20 court filing obtained by Edge, Orinda alleged that Sony infringed on patent number 5,438,560, which in broad terms describes methods for recording and reproducing information via optical disc.

Orinda also named as defendants subsidiaries Sony Electronics, Sony Computer Entertainment and Sony Computer Entertainment America.

Orinda has demanded a jury trial, and is seeking an injunction on manufacturing, sales and distribution of Blu-ray devices such as the PS3, computer peripheral products and dedicated Blu-ray players.

The plaintiff is also asking for "a reasonable royalty."

"Orinda has been and will continue to be damaged as a result of Defendants' infringing conduct," the company said in the filing. "Defendants' infringing conduct will continue unless permanently enjoined by this court."

This isn't the first time that a company has sued Sony over Blu-ray. Target Technology sued Sony in May 2007 for alleged Blu-ray-related infringements. The case was dismissed a few months later.

Source: http://www.edge-online.com/news/ps3-targeted-blu-ray-suit

"Another Lawsuit against a game company. This time Sony is being asked to cease manufacture, sale and supply of all Blu-Ray enabled products, which include the Playstation 3.

Sony has successfully held off companies in the past who have insisted that the PS3 manufacturer had infringed on patents relating to its Blu-Ray discs, and still they keep coming for a slice of the cake.

This time, Californian-based firm Orinda Intellectual Properties has applied to the courts claiming that Sony has violated patent number 5,438,560, which relates to “an optical disk-shaped recording medium comprising a plurality of tracks ,” filed in 1995 by Hyundai Electronics Industries.

Furthermore, a court filing from August 20th, provides evidence that the firm is suing Sony Electronics, Sony Computer Entertainment and Sony Computer Entertainment America and has applied to the courts demanding that Sony pay a 'reasonable royalty' fee. More drastically though, Orinda has asked that Sony cease manufacture, sale and supply of all Blu-Ray enabled products, which include the Playstation 3.

Despite attempts from a number of companies to sue Sony over patent infringements relating to its Blu-Ray discs, all have failed.

Sony will be hoping that the Federal judges of East Texas are more lenient towards them than they were with Nintendo earlier this year.

It was the same courts that backed Anascape Ltd.in a lawsuit against Nintendo in which it won damages of $21 million for infringements on its motion-technology used in Wii and Gamecube controllers."

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United States Patent 5438560

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/5438560.html

"An optical disk-shaped recording medium comprising a plurality of tracks, the tracks constituting blocks in the unit of a predetermined number, each of the blocks being provided with a data region and a first mapping region, a second mapping region being further provided on a center one of the entire tracks, each of the first mapping regions including mapping sectors and replacement sectors, the second mapping region including; a mapping information recording region and a replacement sector region for the first mapping regions of the whole of the blocks, the mapping sectors of each of the first mapping regions recording mapping information about bad sectors of the corresponding block thereon, the replacement sectors of each of the first mapping regions being replaced for the bad sectors of the corresponding block, and an apparatus and a method for recording/reproducing optical information using the optical disk-shaped recording medium."

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Source: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=333391

What is it with companies attacking consoles years after they're out?

It seems nearly every time a console is launched in the US, someone is out to become sue happy a year or two later...

More drastically though, Orinda has asked that Sony cease manufacture, sale and supply of all Blu-Ray enabled products, which include the Playstation 3.

:hmmm:

[Sethos]

"More drastically though, Orinda has asked that Sony cease manufacture, sale and supply of all Blu-Ray enabled products, which include the Playstation 3."

Yeah, like that's going to happen :laugh: God I hate lawsuits sometimes.

[Green_Eye]

I hope Sony mail them a brick .... to their face :shiftyninja:

[Fourjays Veteran]

I start to wonder if these suit-happy companies employ anyone but lawyers. Sony, MS, Nintendo, etc work hard for their money and other companies just go round suing instead. :/

Why stop at Blu-Ray anyway? The "patent" seems to describe optical discs in general?

[ambushed]

Orinda Intellectual Properties

;)

Sounds exactly what you might call a company that does nothing but sit on patents waiting for the opportune moment to sue. The patent once again sounds pretty generic.

Cease manufacture, sale and supply of the ps3? Many companies in patent suits ask for that but im not sure why they bother other than to add more drama. It would never happen regardless of if they win or not.

[houlty]

this is complete rubbish. the sectors shouldn't match the mapping of the maps, but the sectors of the sects. upon this the track of the sectors becomes a map and uses a method to further map beyond the sector, thus somehow becoming a big load of bull****.

[Yasha]

this is complete rubbish. the sectors shouldn't match the mapping of the maps, but the sectors of the sects. upon this the track of the sectors becomes a map and uses a method to further map beyond the sector, thus somehow becoming a big load of bull****.

That's pretty much the poster-child for adopting the UK court system of loser pays. That'd ex nay the majority of these ridiculous lawsuits where the plaintiff is simply hoping for a miracle or an out of court settlement because it's cheaper for them to simply give in.

If we could just get that and congressional term limits we could elimate a giant chunk of this nations international embarrassment. Ok...and when "Dubua" is out and Paris Hilton doesn't get any further press time.

[Dc'1]

Were Sony not involved in actually making the Blu-ray disk? If so I think they have the right to use it :/

[The Teej]

Were Sony not involved in actually making the Blu-ray disk? If so I think they have the right to use it :/

Yeah, but if they infringed on patents, then they must pay royalies where royalties are due.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Ideally/normally but Sony should have been challenged by this company/patent when they first patented the PS3 themselves - Not a year later after it's gone into retail and they've started making money on it :whistle:

[DrCheese]

That's pretty much the poster-child for adopting the UK court system of loser pays.

That's not how it works in the US? That's terrible. No wonder the US is lawsuit happy when you can get away with suing companies/people and then don't pay a penny towards the other sides legal costs if you lose. You could ruin someone that way.

Companies that exist just for holding patents should be illegal. They aren't going to use themselves so they shouldn't be allowed to hold them. Patents are designed to allow a company to sell goods they have designed without being copied by others. If they aren't going to put the patent to use then it should be revoked.

[Cormier6083]

"We're suing you because we have patents for plastic that you're violating!" :rolleyes:

No wonder the US is lawsuit happy when you can get away with suing companies/people and then don't pay a penny towards the other sides legal costs if you lose. You could ruin someone that way.

I always thought that was the point.