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Ottawa firm sues most of wireless industry


When I first read about the patent lawsuit filed by Ottawa-based chip designer Mosaid Technology this week, I was reminded of the time Dr. Evil held the world ransom for “100 billion dollars” during the second Austin Powers movie.

But on further analysis, perhaps the suit isn’t so far fetched.

The company announced Thursday that it has filed a lawsuit against a raft of big tech companies in relation to six Wi-Fi related patents. Mosaid, which filed the action in the United States District Court Eastern District of Texas, claims 17 firms have “infringed and continue to infringe Mosaid’s patents by making and selling products using Wi-Fi technology.

Among the list of targets: Asutek, Canon, Dell, Huawei, Intel, Lexmark, and Research In Motion.

In its release, the Ottawa firm refers to itself as one of the “world’s leading intellectual property companies.”

I usually put little stock into how companies bill themselves, but this one might actually be an accurate.

Mosaid has licenced its six wireless patents to over a dozen other companies, including Sony, Samsung, Panasonic and Nokia. And very recently, the company also settled a patent agreement with both LG and MediaTek. These agreements could be give its case a major boost in the Texas court, which is a state that has recently been very friendly to patent holders making similar claims.

Remember, we all laughed when Dr. Evil wanted “sharks with frickin’ laser beams attached to their heads” during the first Austin Powers movie. But by the third one, his dreams came true.

Perhaps the future of any Wi-Fi enabled product will eventually go through this Ottawa-based patent company.

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