Spotify just received two lawsuits it can display alongside its accolades and awards. It’s actually the same lawsuit, filed by PacketVideo over patent infringement, but it’s been filed once in the Netherlands and once in California Southern District Court in San Diego.
PacketVideo contends that the popular music streaming service violates relevant patents the multimedia software company holds that cover digital music information transmitted over a communications network, according to documents filed July 27. The company further claims that Spotify is perfectly aware that it’s violating these patents, since PacketVideo told it so and tried to come to an agreement before resorting to the law.
“PacketVideo has a strong intellectual property portfolio, and will take any necessary action needed to protect its intellectual property and prevent the misuse of its patents,” Joel Espelien, general counsel, PacketVideo said in a statement.
Both the U.S. and the European patents were originally filed in the 1990s and were acquired by PacketVideo as part of its acquisition of Basel, Switzerland-based SDC AG in 2007. Founded in 1998, PacketVideo was formerly was a unit of NextWave Wireless. That company sold PacketVideo to NTT DOCOMO in 2010.
The lawsuit has raised some controversy. TechDirt is among those unimpressed by PacketVideo’s claims, for one reason because the main patent in question – 5,636,276 – is too broad to be enforceable.
Related Links:
TechDirt post: http://tinyurl.com/3bbharm
PaidContent post: http://tinyurl.com/3vjtear
Legal filing, posted to DocStoc by Michael Masnick: 61094394-PacketVideo-v-Spotify-et-al
