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Nintendo being sued at international level

On Behalf of | Jun 30, 2014 | Business Litigation |

Texas is a popular state for businesses, but local laws are not the only consideration for entrepreneurs and business executives running companies in the state. One issue that is often at the center of business litigation is patent or trademark violations. Nintendo recently lost a lawsuit at the international level against Koninklijke Philips, a Dutch company alleging technology patent violations.

A U.K. court found that Nintendo had infringed on two of the Dutch company’s patents, and Koninklijke Philips has now filed a lawsuit against Nintendo in the U.S. The Dutch company is saying that Nintendo’s Wii, Wii Remote and Wii Remote Plus controllers, amongst other items, violate the first patent that the U.K. court found Nintendo to have infringed. The second patent that generated a victory for the Dutch company was also named in the U.S. lawsuit, with Koninklijke Philips saying that Nintendo’s Wii U and GamePad console ecosystem were the culpable products. The Dutch company has also filed lawsuits in Germany and France.

Earlier in June, a federal appeals court dismissed another lawsuit against Nintendo that was brought by the Texas-based company Triton Tech, which alleged that Nintendo’s Wii Remotes infringed on a patent. Triton had once before failed to show a valid patent that had been infringed upon with the court saying that Triton had not properly demonstrated that its invention was complete.

In the lawsuits from Koninklijke Philips, Nintendo is saying that the patents recognizing hand gestures and motion are invalid, and Nintendo has indicated that it will appeal the U.K. decision. Whether a business is defending itself against a lawsuit or business executives feel that bringing litigation against another company is inevitable, it may be helpful for the company to consult a business litigation attorney.

Source: Polygon, “Nintendo loses Wii motion controller lawsuit to Philips“, Jenna Pitcher , June 23, 2014