Next week on Nov. 9th, BlackBerry maker Research in Motion and Virginia based patent house NTP go back to court where it is expected that RIM asks that the previously agreed upon settlement of $450 million to NTP is enforced and that NTP asks that an injunction blocking the sales of BlackBerry devices and service in the United States is enforced.
Some analysts feel that no matter what happens, the stock price could go up. Merrill Lynch gives RIM’s stock (RIMM) a target of $85 dollars and a “buy” rating citing recent weakness in the stock as a buying opportunity. Others feel that a level of uncertainty could be removed if a ruling one way or the other is issued. If the settlement is enforced, RIM can get on with “Business as usual” If the stay on the injunction is lifted, RIM will undoubtedly look to weigh the cost of meeting NTP’s terms with the cost of moving to their backup plan of providing service without infringing on any of NTP’s patents.
Whatever happens, it should be a big week for Research in Motion.