Some analysts are concerned that patents held by "patent troll" Rembrandt IP Management will be used successfully against cable companies and others.In cases originally spread across federal courts in Delaware, New York and Texas, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Charter Communications, Cox Communications and Cablevision Systems face claims that their cable-modem services infringe eight patents now held by Rembrandt, and that their video services violate a ninth one related to digital-TV transmission.
Separately, ABC, CBS, NBC Universal and Fox — as well as manufacturer Sharp Electronics — face suits alleging infringement of Rembrandt’s patent on digital TV transmission.
According to an attorney close to the litigation, the firm has sought to collect half of 1% of all revenue generated from services that allegedly infringe on the data and video patents.
“If they’re successful, this could affect everything from the cost of cable service to the price of TVs,” said the attorney close to the litigation, who spoke only on condition of anonymity.There’s cause for concern: Rembrandt won its first significant legal victory earlier this month. A federal jury in Marshall, Texas, on Feb. 6 awarded Rembrandt $41 million after finding Novartis’ Ciba Vision eye-care unit had infringed on a patent — bought by Rembrandt — covering a treatment for contact-lens surfaces. Ciba Vision spokeswoman Amanda Cancel noted there has been no court order and declined to comment “on pending litigation.”
It will be interesting to see how this plays out and if anyone at Vonage is reading, how about using some funds to buy Rembrandt?
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