Cash-strapped Kodak is suing HTC and Apple claiming the two companies have infringed several of its patents in their smartphone and tablets.
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According to GSMArena, a total of four patents have been infringed concerning “automatically transmitting images from an electronic camera to a service provider using a network configuration file” and “capturing digital images to be transferred to an email address”.
Sending picture messages and attaching photos to an email are standard features found in other smartphone, but LG, Samsung, Motorola and Nokia have already struck licensing deals with Kodak, where Apple and HTC have not.
Kodak didn’t just jump the gun and sue both companies though as they’ve been trying to negotiate licencing deals with Apple and HTC, but to no avail. The company is also upfront about its intentions, which are to receive “fair compensation for the unauthorized use” of its technology, rather than outright banning their products (Apple could learn something here).
Kodak is experiencing dire financial times, having warned investors if it fails to sell image patents this year it could be forced to claim bankruptcy. In fact, the company is to be delisted from the New York Stock exchange after a notice was filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on the 3rd of Jan.
