Just at a time when Research in Motion (RIM) was probably hoping for a little good luck and positivity, the BlackBerry maker has been slapped with a fine of just over $147 million dollars following a patent infringement claim by Mformation.
The software company issued a complaint that the ailing Canadian Smartphone maker’s BlackBerry Enterprise had infringed a number of patents – one of the most valued corporate features which allows remote management of BlackBerry devices.
The court filed in favor of Mformation and ordered RIM to pay a fee of $8 for every handset using the technology – a total of 18.4 million handsets and a resulting bill of $147.2 million. According to Mformation, the management feature was created during the 90s and well before RIM began using it in their popular BlackBerry Smartphones.
Unfair and Misleading
Of course, RIM was adamant that the technology used across its own devices is the product of decades of hard work and research, arguing that Mformation’s allegations are both unfair and misleading.
RIM is currently going through perhaps the toughest period in the company’s history, following spectacular share value plummets, a waning consumer base across the world and diminishing investor confidence resulting from ongoing BlackBerry 10 release setbacks.
The BlackBerry 10 project is now set to come to fruition in early 2013, though many fear that the company has little to rely on in the meantime and could be gearing up for its own swansong.
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