Reuters have reported that Philips Electronics have won a patent infringement case against Nintendo in the United Kingdom, apparently the first of four lawsuits brought to bear against the company.
As per usual, this involves the technology behind the Wii Remote and the controller’s implementation across Wii and Wii U, the patent itself having covered motion, gesture and pointing control with either a set-top box or console. Philips claim to have been trying to arrange a licensing agreement with Nintendo since 2011, seemingly ignoring the Wii’s success until such point since the console launched globally in 2006.
Nintendo UK have issued their response to the situation, revealing that the UK Patents Court said that the patent dispute was invalid although allowed Philips to make amendments to assert their case. The company still believes them to be invalid, and will seek to appeal against the decision.
“On 20 June 2014, following a trial heard before Mr Justice Birss, the UK Patents Court found that the Wii, Wii U and Wii Remote infringe two patents (‘498 and ‘650) asserted against Nintendo by Philips Electronics. The ‘498 and ‘650 patents were held to be invalid as originally granted, but Philips Electronics were permitted to make validating amendments during the course of the litigation.
A further patent (‘484) was asserted by Philips Electronics but was found to be invalid.
Nintendo firmly believes that the amended ‘498 and ‘650 patents are invalid and intends to seek permission to appeal Mr Justice Birss’ judgment.
Philips Electronics has yet to make clear whether it intends to seek permission to appeal any part of the judgment.
Nintendo is committed to ensuring that this judgment does not affect continued sales of its highly acclaimed line of video game hardware, software and accessories and will actively pursue all such legitimate steps as are necessary to avoid any interruptions to its business.
Nintendo has a long history of developing innovative products while respecting the intellectual property rights of others.”
[Thanks GamesIndustry International]
Nintendo responds to losing UK patent battle with Philips Electronics
