As you guys have probably heard by now, BlackBerry is suing the makers of the Typo iPhone keyboard over alleged patent infringement. Upon first glance it is easy to understand why since the design of the Typo keyboard is very similar to that of BlackBerry’s own keyboard design.
However according to the former director of the US patent and trademark office, the case is not as clear cut as there are several factors involved when determining if there has been a patent infringement, and basing it on looks alone isn’t enough.
The good news for BlackBerry is that it seems that things appear to be going in their favor as District Judge William H. Orrick has validated two of the three patents that BlackBerry has put forth. Basically what this means for BlackBerry is that out of three patents that they have submitted, they will be able to argue the merits of their case based on two of them.
According to Kevin Johnson, BlackBerry’s lawyer, he claims that Typo’s copying was intentional and deliberate. Typo’s lawyer, Olivier Taillieu, on the other hand argues that BlackBerry is attempting to monopolize the keyboard market and that BlackBerry has not shown that the sales of devices are driven by the popularity of its keyboards.
We have to admit that he does have a point, although does that really give anyone the right to possibly copy off others’ designs? Either way BlackBerry will be looking to block further sales of the Typo case and according to the judge, a ruling to block the sales will be issued “promptly”. What do you guys think? Is this case in BlackBerry’s favor?
Filed in . Read more about BlackBerry, Legal and Typo.