Antenna developer sues boatloads of manufacturers
By Chris Ziegler 
posted May 12th 2009 5:31AM
posted May 12th 2009 5:31AM
Modern phones deeply rely on the ability to efficiently switch between two, three, or even more bands, a sad reality of the patchwork map of available spectrum the nations of the world have imposed on themselves. That kind of multiband tech requires really awesome miniaturized antenna tech, and a Spanish company, Fractus, says that a whole bunch of the world's top-tier manufacturers are blatantly violating its IP in the field. It's suing Samsung, LG, RIM, Pantech, Kyocera, Palm, HTC, Sharp, UTStarcom, and Sanyo for allegedly infringing on a total of nine patents it holds; the company doesn't specify what kinds of damages it's seeking, but something tells us it's a huge-ish number. Considering that we're pretty big fans of reception, this is a suit we can kinda get behind -- assuming Fractus' claims are legit, of course.[Via Phone Scoop]
Ooh, fractals...
Note the absence of Motorola, Apple, Nokia and Sony Erricson. Either that means these companies aren't infringing on the patents (unlikely) or some "closed door" license deal has taken place.
That or this mob plans to sue the big boys in the future.