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Kodak Vs. Sony. Patent Engineering Lauren Kling Kourosh Zamanizadeh. Kodak’s Court Battles. VS . In the industrial technology wars Kodak has mainly be a defendant, not plaintiff 15 Year battle with Polaroid
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Kodak Vs. Sony Patent Engineering Lauren Kling Kourosh Zamanizadeh
Kodak’s Court Battles VS. • In the industrial technology wars Kodak has mainly be a defendant, not plaintiff • 15 Year battle with Polaroid • $925 million to settle a patent-infringement case involving peel-apart instant films • Learned from their mistakes
Kodak’s Background • Until recently Kodak was neither willing to license its technology, nor determined to protect it • "We've invested millions of dollars in developing these technologies and we have an obligation not only to our shareholders but to other licensees to protect that property” – Kodak Representative • Kodak invented the first digital camera in the mid-1970's and holds nearly 1,000 patents related to digital photography.
VS. - Over three years of negotiations - Kodak charged Sony with infringing on 10 patents - Patents were issued from 1987 to 2003. - The patents covered various aspects of capturing, storing and displaying both still and moving digital images.
Technology • patents covering CMOS (complementary metal-oxide semiconductors) and CCD (charge-coupled device) image sensors, as well as emerging technologies such as cell phone cameras. • inventions in an electronic camera utilizing image compression and digital storage • inventions in an electronic camera providing multi-format storage of full and reduced resolution images
Four of the key patents involved in the case 1) #5,016,107: Electronic still camera utilizing image compression and digital storage 2) #5,477,264: Electronic imaging system using a removable software-enhanced storage device 3) #5,164,831: Electronic still camera providing multi-format storage of full and reduced resolution images 4) #5,493,335: Single sensor color camera with user selectable image record size
Kodak’s Strategy • looking for ways to turn its technologies into revenues without compromising its competitive position • “I don't think commercializing patents is an important part of their revenue story, but protecting their intellectual property will be a major part of their success in the digital photography market,'' said David R. Giroux, an investment analyst
Result of Litigation • Kodak and Sony, agreed on a cross-licensing agreement that would allow each manufacturer access to each other’s patents. January 4, 2007 • Kodak declined to offer speculations of future products the manufacturers might produce • Royalties will be paid to Kodak, $250M royalties 2007 • probably looking to get license revenue from other camera makers as well i.e. Olympus, Sanyo