Kodak, a world leader in photographic technology, is not happy with computer firm Apple, and mobile phone company Research in Motion, for infringing their intellectual property rights.
Kodak have filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission asking for a “limited exclusion order” on certain products sold by Apple and RIM and have also started legal action in New York against both companies.
According to Kodak, both Apple and RIM are using technology in their products which has been patented by Kodak Eastman.
“Kodak has a long history of digital imaging innovation and we have invested hundreds of millions of dollars creating our industry-leading patent portfolio” said Laura Quatela, the chief intellectual property officer of Eastman Kodak.
The issues centre on the way that images are pre-viewed in the Apple iPhone and in the Research in Motion BlackBerry and also how the camera interacts with the software in the iPhone.
Kodak reckons that it is their patented technology and that it is being used without permission.
“We’ve had discussions for years with both companies in an attempt to resolve this issue amicably, and we have not been able to reach a satisfactory agreement” said Quatela.
“In light of that, we are taking this action to ensure that we protect the interests of our shareholders and the existing licensees of our technology.
“Our primary interest is not to disrupt the availability of any product but to obtain fair compensation for the use of our technology.
“There’s a basic issue of fairness that needs to be addressed. Those devices use Kodak technology, and we are merely seeking compensation for the use of our technology in their products.”
So although Kodak have asked for a limited exclusion order from the International Trade Commission, they don’t really want Apple or RIM to stop selling the phones, basically Kodak just want some cash and everything will be fine, although we don’t know how much compensation Kodak is looking for.
Kodak already licenses their technology to around thirty other technology companies including Sony Ericsson, Samsung and Nokia, who all pay Kodak for the use of Kodak’s intellectual property.
Kodak has filed the law suits against the two companies in Rochester, New York and is confident that their claims will be upheld. They recently won a similar claim against Samsung for the way images were previewed in Samsung phones.
