BlackBerry has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Snap Inc. SImilar to the companies lawsuit against Facebook last month, BlackBerry says that Snap has infringed on intellectual property, including innovations on real-time activity location for maps, message notification techniques and methods for integrating advertising on mobile devices.
The claims, which have not been proven in court, did not specify what financial compensation the company is seeking.
BlackBerry says it has been working to establish a dialogue on potential partnerships with Snap for more than a year, and is still open to one, but says it has an obligation to pursue appropriate legal remedies.
“In many respects, through BlackBerry Messenger and other research and development, BlackBerry helped pioneer modern mobile messaging- secure, instant and user friendly on a mobile device. The appeal and success of BlackBerry Messenger led consumers to consider instant messaging functionality as an integral aspect of mobile communications, resulting today in billions of people worldwide engaging in instant messaging over their mobile device.
“As an innovator, BlackBerry took many steps to safeguard this valuable intellectual property. It received numerous patents protecting the cutting-edge features of it’s mobile phones, BlackBerry Messenger, and other communications applications that make such products secure, easy-to-use, and ultimately engaging to the end-user, thereby driving user growth and retention.
“Defendant has used BlackBerry’s intellectual property to compete with it in the mobile messaging space.”
The lawsuit asks for an injunction stopping Snap from infringing on BlackBerry’s patents in their products, and as with the Facebook lawsuit, demands a trial by jury. As for the financials, BlackBerry is asking for the typical costs that are associated with the litigation, as well as compensation for infringement with enhancement of damages.
The lawsuit against Snap follows ones filed against Facebook and its WhatsApp and Instagram subsidiaries in early March alleging infringement on several patents related to messaging applications.
The complaint accuses Snap of infringing six patents issued in 2012 and 2014. Two of those are among the seven BlackBerry patents that were in the suit against Facebook filed March 6.
The patents in question:
- 8,209,634 – Previewing a new event on a small screen device
- 8,301,713 – Handheld electronic device and associated method providing time data in a messaging environment
- 7,970,849 – Handheld electronic device and associated method providing time data in a messaging environment
- 8,825,084 – System and method for determining action spot locations relative to the location of a mobile device
- 8,326,327 – System and method for determining action spot locations relative to the location of a mobile device
- 8,296,351 – System and method for pushing information to a mobile device
- 8,676,929 – System and method for pushing information to a mobile device
A spokesperson for BlackBerry said in a statement,
“BlackBerry has a well-earned reputation for protecting and securing our customers’ data and privacy. For more than a year we have been working to establish a dialogue with Snap as we believe there are far more opportunities for partnership than disagreement. While we continue to hold this door open, we also have a strong claim that Snap infringed on our intellectual property, harmed our shareholders, and we have an obligation to pursue appropriate legal remedies.”
BlackBerry Snap Inc. Complaint by Kerry Flynn on Scribd
