A federal judge has dealt another blow to Sony by refusing to overturn an earlier jury verdict that awarded $90.7 million to Immersion Corp. Immersion accused Sony of patent infringement for its use of "haptic technology" in the PlayStation consoles (DualShock). Game manufacturers refer to controller vibration in response to video game activity as Haptic technology. In September 2004, an Oakland, Calif. jury found that Sony had violated patents surrounding the technology.
Sony attempted to have the earlier decision thrown out by accusing Immersion Corp. of withholding information of earlier haptic technology inventions by Craig Thorner. Sony believed the information could have changed the outcome of the trial. However, Sony made a $150,000 payment to Thorner to license his patents, which led the Judge to doubt the reliability of the consultant's testimony.
She said that the payment could be viewed as a payment for positive testimony. "The court finds that Sony has not presented clear and convincing evidence of misconduct by Immersion that would warrant a new trial," U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken wrote in her decision. The biggest fears Sony has over the result of this case is possibly having to drop or modify such functionality for the PS3.
Immersion is now considering suing Sony for "alleged payment for testimony".
Source:
Betanews
She said that the payment could be viewed as a payment for positive testimony. "The court finds that Sony has not presented clear and convincing evidence of misconduct by Immersion that would warrant a new trial," U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken wrote in her decision. The biggest fears Sony has over the result of this case is possibly having to drop or modify such functionality for the PS3.
Immersion is now considering suing Sony for "alleged payment for testimony".
Source:
Betanews
