Seattle (WA) – Intellectual property (IP) company Typhoon Touch Technologies has “significantly” expanded its lawsuit that against numerous companies using touch screen technologies in their products. Following the original complaint against Dell, Typhoon and co-plaintiff Nova Technologies today said that suit has been filed against ten more companies, including Apple, Nokia and Palm.
If Typhoon in fact holds patents that are confirmed and determined as being critical to touchscreen products, the company could be looking at a gold mine, covering licensing fees more millions of products sold every year. The original suit was filed against Dell in December of 1995, was expanded in March of this year against Xplore, Electrovaya and Sand Dune Ventures.
Since then, Typhoon has reached an agreement with Motion Computing or an undisclosed sum settled with Electrovaya. Electrovaya admitted to patent infringement and agreed to pay “an undisclosed sum representing a royalty payment of at least 20% on past and future sales of its Scribbler Tablet PCs in the United States.” Typhoon said it withdrew from preliminary settlement talks with defendant Sand Dune Ventures.
In a new wave of suits, Typhoon steps up the game and goes after the Big Boys, which could be significantly more expensive, difficult and time consuming than its first wave of suits: The expanded suit names Apple, Fujitsu Computer Systems, Toshiba America Information Systems, Lenovo U.S., Panasonic of North America; HTC America, Palm, Samsung Electronics America, Nokia and LG Electronics USA as defendants.
“The addition of these defendants is a further step in protecting Typhoon’s IP from being unfairly exploited. Hopefully, the world of potential infringers will take notice that it is the company’s intent to aggressively protect its intellectual property,” stated Craig Weiner, from the law firm of Hofheimer, Gartlir & Gross in New York City. “
Typhoon’s complaint alleges that the targeted companies infringe on its patents entitled “Portable Computer with Touch Screen and Computer System Employing Same,” and “Portable Computer with Touch Screen and Computing System Employing Same,” through various actions “including the manufacturing, selling, offering for sale, and/or importing of a variety of portable computer products, including but not limited to tablet PCs, slate PCs, handheld PCs, personal digital assistants (PDAs), ultra mobile PCs (UMPCs), smart phones, and/or other products covered by the patents-in-suit.”
If Typhoon in fact holds patents that are confirmed and determined as being critical to touchscreen products, the company could be looking at a gold mine, covering licensing fees more millions of products sold every year. The original suit was filed against Dell in December of 1995, was expanded in March of this year against Xplore, Electrovaya and Sand Dune Ventures.
Since then, Typhoon has reached an agreement with Motion Computing or an undisclosed sum settled with Electrovaya. Electrovaya admitted to patent infringement and agreed to pay “an undisclosed sum representing a royalty payment of at least 20% on past and future sales of its Scribbler Tablet PCs in the United States.” Typhoon said it withdrew from preliminary settlement talks with defendant Sand Dune Ventures.
In a new wave of suits, Typhoon steps up the game and goes after the Big Boys, which could be significantly more expensive, difficult and time consuming than its first wave of suits: The expanded suit names Apple, Fujitsu Computer Systems, Toshiba America Information Systems, Lenovo U.S., Panasonic of North America; HTC America, Palm, Samsung Electronics America, Nokia and LG Electronics USA as defendants.
“The addition of these defendants is a further step in protecting Typhoon’s IP from being unfairly exploited. Hopefully, the world of potential infringers will take notice that it is the company’s intent to aggressively protect its intellectual property,” stated Craig Weiner, from the law firm of Hofheimer, Gartlir & Gross in New York City. “
Typhoon’s complaint alleges that the targeted companies infringe on its patents entitled “Portable Computer with Touch Screen and Computer System Employing Same,” and “Portable Computer with Touch Screen and Computing System Employing Same,” through various actions “including the manufacturing, selling, offering for sale, and/or importing of a variety of portable computer products, including but not limited to tablet PCs, slate PCs, handheld PCs, personal digital assistants (PDAs), ultra mobile PCs (UMPCs), smart phones, and/or other products covered by the patents-in-suit.”