Forgent Networks Responds to JPEG Patent Rejection
Posted by Sachin Garg on 2nd July 2006 | Permanent Link
Forgent’s famous JPEG patent was recently rejected by Patent office as a result of PUBPAT’s request.
In press releases after the ruling, both PUBPAT and Forgent claimed victory. Which ofcourse confused most of us.
PUBPAT’s press release said:
In the reexamination proceeding initiated late last year by the Public Patent Foundation (”PUBPAT”), the USPTO has rejected the broadest claims of the patent Forgent Networks is asserting against the JPEG standard.
and Forgent’s press release said:
Forgent Networks announced that on May 25, 2006, the USPTO issued its first office action, a non-final action, confirming a majority of the claims in United States Patent 4,698,672. The action upholds 27 of the 46 claims of Forgent’s patent. Forgent will vigorously defend the remaining claims that were not initially upheld in this first office action.
Both parties seemed equally optimistic back then, but a more recent press release by Forgent has a different tone:
“We are shocked and disappointed at the outcome of the claims construction ruling,” said Richard Snyder, chairman and CEO of Forgent. “We find it difficult to reconcile the outcome of the ruling with our continued belief in the patent and our case. We are currently weighing our options and will decide our course of action in the near future.”
The 30 companies they are litigating against can probably breath easier now.
Another major development during this period was where the court has ruled that the principles of equity apply, meaning that a court considering slapping an injunction on the infringer must consider how much damage is really being done. This is bad news if a company that owns a patent only has it for the purposes of suing other people.