Lawyers for Research in Motion have discovered 6 technical books that they hope will invalidate patent infringement claims made by NTP. These books, published by Telenor, the largest provider of telecommunications services in Norway, describe a “wireless email system” similar to that which Research in Motion uses for it’s popular BlackBerry service. The key here is that these books were published back in 1986, years before NTP filed for patents in 1991.
The Telenor publications openly disclosed and described to the public the mobile e-mail system sought to be claimed years later in NTP patents. Indeed, the Telenor publications openly disclosed that e-mail system long before NTP claims that its system was even conceived.
This new evidence is another in a long line of blows to the NTP patent suite. Since settling with Research in Motion back in March for $450 million, 7 of the 8 patents have since been overturned by the U.S. Patent Office. RIM and NTP have also be fighting over the terms of the settlement agreement sparking additional lawsuites between the two companies.
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