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Sling Media hit with patent infringement lawsuit

17 February 2007 16:14 by James "Dela" Delahunty

Sling Media has been sued by an inventor for alleged patent infringement over technology used with the company's Slingbox television placeshifting device. Stuart Mershon was awarded a patent back in 2001 that covers a "wireless speaker system". He contests that the Slingbox and SlingPlayer software infringe his patent because they can transmit audio wirelessly along with the video signal.

The case was filed in US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, known to be a hotspot for this type of case due to a reputation Judges and Juries have for being sympathetic to plaintiffs. Mershon clams to have contacted Sling Media on March 4, 2005, before the launch of the Slingbox.

The company responded and said it has "not infringed and is not currently infringing the '282 Patent, either directly or indirectly, contributorily or by inducement." It also filed a counterclaim seeking a judgment of non-infringement and invalidation of the patent in question.

The patent describes a system comprised of a transmission unit and wireless headphones or speakers. The system allows the users to control the audio output from virtually any location with a keypad being into the headphones. The whole system depends on a "wireless telephone network" to function.

Source:
Ars Technica

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