Microsoft, Nintendo named in gaming tech suit

[Sharpshooter]

[Onslaught]No one is safe.[/Onslaught]

Anascape sues Microsoft, Nintendo
Texas-based firm alleges that console manufacturers have infringed on a dozen patents granted between 1999 and 2005.
By Brendan Sinclair, GameSpot
Posted Aug 3, 2006 5:33 pm PT
Sony has already lost a lawsuit regarding patent infringement in its DualShock game pads, and now rivals Microsoft and Nintendo are facing their own legal battles over controller technology.

Texas-based Anascape filed suit on Monday in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, alleging that both companies infringed on 12 patents it was granted between 1999 and 2005. The patents in question deal with a variety of controller technologies, including analog sensors, tactile feedback, and vibration mechanisms.

The complaint specifies which patents it believes each company violated, but it doesn't detail the alleged infringements. Anascape is seeking payment with interest for damages it suffered as a result of the alleged infringement and an accounting of Nintendo and Microsoft revenues that stemmed from the use of the patents. If a judge doesn't rule for a permanent injunction against the companies' use of the patents, Anascape is also asking for them to be made to pay a compulsory licensing fee to keep using them.

Court records indicate that a summons was issued to Nintendo and Microsoft on Monday, but the companies as yet have not assigned any legal representation in the case.

As I remarked in the thread where I found this, I can't help but wonder if I'm only now starting to wonder if these are cash-in suits now that Nintendo gets put in the crosshairs, or if it's only because this is the second announcement of this type in about a month's time or so.