Hillcrest targets Nintendo for patent violations. Image: eyeonthesky/Flickr.
Japanese videogame giant Nintendo Co. has enjoyed a massive market resurgence during this particular generation of hardware, thanks to the huge popularity of its touch-screen DS handheld and its innovative Wii home console. However, electronics laboratory Hillcrest is looking to haul back Nintendo’s success with accusations of patent infringement related to the Wii Remote control system.
According to Maryland-based Hillcrest Laboratories Inc., Nintendo is in violation of four of its patents, three of which are related to motion-control technologies, while a fourth is connected to graphical interface software.
Hillcrest’s complaint, which was filed this week with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) in Washington, is seeking the enforcement of a block on all imports of the Nintendo Wii console and its accompanying motion-sensing Wii Remote controllers.
“While Hillcrest Labs has a great deal of respect for Nintendo and the Wii, Hillcrest Labs believes that Nintendo is in clear violation of its patents and has taken this action to protect its intellectual property rights,” said the Rockville company said in an official statement.
By way of response, a Nintendo spokesman said that the Kyoto-based gaming titan has not yet received any notice of Hillcrest’s lawsuit and is subsequently not able to issue official comment regarding the accusations.
A separate civil suit has been filed by Hillcrest against Nintendo in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, but this is likely to remain in the background while the ITC addresses Hillcrest’s allegations of patent infringement.
Bloomberg reports that, while the ITC has the power to enforce an import block against Nintendo if it is found guilty of U.S. patent infringement, a market-influencing decision is unlikely to be established any time soon -- with investigations typically requiring around 15 months of process time.
Hillcrest’s lawsuit filing is not the first that Nintendo has had to confront since its Wii console took the gaming industry by storm upon launch at the end of 2006. Specifically, it is currently facing a ban on its Wii Classic controller after Texas-based Anascape Ltd. took it to task regarding patent violations related to the controller’s analogue stick configuration.
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)