Discovery mounts legal attack on Amazon's Kindle

by Stevie Smith - Mar 18 2009, 17:30

While tech consumers and avid book readers alike are probably struggling with the onset of mounting temptation after Amazon recently revealed its second-generation Kindle book reader, not everyone has been left thrilled by the emergence of the retail giant’s latest consumer gadget.

More pointedly, media and entertainment outfit Discovery Communications Inc. (of Discovery Channel fame) has this week filed a lawsuit against Amazon regarding the alleged violation of a patent covering encryption technology for electronic book distribution.

The filing, lodged on Tuesday in a District Court in Delaware, claims that both generations of the portable Kindle reader infringe on the patent in question, which was acquired in November of 2007 by company founder John Hendricks.

According to Maryland-based Discovery, the company and its founder played major contributing roles in the creation of digital delivery services during the 1990s, with Hendricks specifically responsible for developing a secure, encrypted system for the selection, transmission and sale of electronic books.

While the Amazon Kindle is perhaps the leading light in the burgeoning electronic book reader market, there are other similar platforms that might also fall under the legal gaze of Discovery.

However, speaking with Reuters, a spokesperson for the company has declined to comment as to whether the likes of Sony’s Reader will be targeted for violating the patent.

Amazon has not yet issued an official comment regarding the lawsuit.

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