It is not a good day for Research in Motion after it was spanked by a U.S. judge,
who said a $450-million settlement reached earlier this year between
RIM and NTP over a patent dispute can't be enforced. U.S. District
court judge James Spencer will now decide whether and/or how to impose
an injunction that could prevent RIM from selling Blackberrys in the
U.S. So what does RIM do now? They can settle the patent dispute, which
will cost them a whole lot more than $450-million; they can wait until
the U.S. Patent Office completes its review of NTP's patents, which RIM
disputes; or RIM can implement a software work-around
that will continue to do business in the U.S. even if an injunction
comes down. My sense is both sides are so well-entrenched and so
convinced of their positions, a settlement could be the last of
the three options explored. It is important to remember there
is little to be gained by NTP if RIM's U.S. business is badly
damaged. All NTP wants is its pound of flesh. RIM's willingness to
cooperate depends on the terms of a settlement and whether they're
attractive enough from a financial and licensing flexibility
perspective to convince RIM to put aside its convictions.