nancy_gohring
Writer

Motorola asks ITC to ban BlackBerry imports

news
Jan 22, 20101 min

The phone makers have been engaged in patent battles since early 2008

Patent litigation between Motorola and Research In Motion is heating up, with Motorola filing a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission.

In the complaint, filed Friday, Motorola alleges that RIM engages in unfair trade practices by importing and selling products that infringe five Motorola patents. The patents cover technologies related to Wi-Fi access, application management, user interface and power management, Motorola said.

Motorola is asking the ITC to investigate RIM and bar the company from importing, marketing and selling products in the U.S. that use the technologies.

RIM has been deploying delay tactics in ongoing patent litigation and has refused to design around Motorola’s technologies, Motorola claims.

The companies have been engaged in patent infringement suits dating back to early 2008. In one of those suits, RIM accused Motorola of charging exorbitant fees to license patents that are essential to implementing standard technologies. RIM also accused Motorola of infringing nine of its patents.

RIM declined to comment on Motorola’s filing with the ITC.

nancy_gohring

Nancy Gohring is a freelance journalist who started writing about mobile phones just in time to cover the transition to digital. She's written about PCs from Hanover, cellular networks from Singapore, wireless standards from Cyprus, cloud computing from Seattle and just about any technology subject you can think of from Las Vegas. Her work has appeared in the New York Times, Computerworld, Wired, the Seattle Times and other well-respected publications.

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