“The U.S. International Trade Commission official reviewing Eastman Kodak Co.’s patent complaint against Apple Inc. and Research in Motion Ltd. is retiring, casting further uncertainty on a case the camera company has said could bring in $1 billion,” Matt Jarzemsky reports for Dow Jones Newswires.
“The official, ITC Chief Administrative Law Judge Paul Luckern, ruled in January that Apple’s and RIM’s smartphones don’t infringe on Kodak patents covering an image-preview function in cameras,” Jarzemsky reports. “The setback raised questions about the company’s strategy to fund its multi-year turnaround effort through intellectual property litigation. Luckern was later directed to reconsider the case as the full ITC panel rejected parts of his decision on appeal. Luckern was expected to give a further decision as soon as Aug. 30. Wednesday is his last day with the agency, and his cases will be reassigned among the other administrative law judges, an ITC spokeswoman said.”
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Jarzemsky reports, “Meanwhile, Kodak is also reviewing a potential sale of the small but valuable slice of its patent portfolio focused on digital imaging. It unveiled the effort last month, following a patent sale by Nortel Networks Corp. (NRTLQ) that highlighted the hot demand for intellectual property focused on tech products.”
Read more in the full article here.
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