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Court Closes the Book on Encyclopaedia Britannica
Monday, October 13, 2008
Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione Victorious on Behalf of Client Alpine Electronics of America, Inc. and Alpine Electronics, Inc.
CHICAGO, Oct. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione, one of the
largest intellectual property law firms in the United States, announced that a
court has ruled in favor of its clients, Alpine Electronics of America, Inc.
and Alpine Electronics, Inc., manufacturers of high performance mobile
electronics, including mobile navigational products, in a patent infringement
case.
Encyclopaedia Britannica (EB), a provider of learning and knowledge
products, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District
of Texas Austin Division before Judge Lee Yeakel. Brinks client, Alpine,
challenged EB's assertion that Alpine's navigational products had infringed
EB's U.S. Patent No. 5,241,671 ('671) relating to searching encyclopedias
stored on electronic compact disks (CDs). Because the patent failed to
disclose adequate structure, scope and understandable definition of certain
terms, the court found all claims of EB's '671 patent invalid.
"We are pleased that we could accomplish this result in a cost-effective
manner for our clients," said Gary Ropski, president of Brinks. "Discovery
has been stayed while this motion was pending. All the claims of the patent
were declared invalid for indefiniteness, because the patent failed to
disclose structure that corresponded to computer software means plus function
clauses."
By way of background, in 1989, EB filed an application for a patent that
was issued in 1993. That same year, however, in a rare action by the
Commissioner of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), an eight-year
reexamination of EB's patent was commenced because the Commissioner considered
the patent to be too broad. Then, in 2001, after eight years of reexamining
the patent, the USPTO issued a reexamination certificate that narrowed the
scope of the '671 patent. In 2005, EB asserted that their reexamined '671
patent was infringed by Alpine and its co-defendants, all of which manufacture
navigational devices.
The Brinks attorneys representing Alpine in this matter were Gary M.
Ropski, Laura Beth Miller, Christopher A. Harkins and Andrea L. Evensen.
Alpine Electronics of America, Inc. is one of the leading manufacturers of
mobile electronics specializing in mobile multimedia, digital entertainment,
security and navigational products. For additional information, visit
http://www.alpine-usa.com.
Founded in 1917, Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione is based in Chicago with five
additional offices across the country, including Ann Arbor, serving the
intellectual property needs of clients from around the world. The firm is one
of the largest IP law firms in the country, with more than 170 attorneys,
scientific advisors and patent agents specializing in intellectual property
litigation and all aspects of patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret,
unfair competition, intellectual asset management, and technology and
licensing agreements. Brinks routinely handles assignments in fields as
diverse as electrical, chemical, mechanical, biotechnology, pharmaceutical,
nanotechnology, Internet and computer technology, as well as in trademarks and
brand names for a wide variety of products and services. For more information,
visit http://www.usebrinks.com.
CONTACT:
Sydney Iglitzen
(312) 840-3163
siglitzen@usebrinks.com
SOURCE Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione
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