Shooting Blanks: Toshiba Sues Imation, Others over Recordable DVD Media

Toshiba has filed a lawsuit against Imation and several other recordable DVD media makers, saying they infringe on Toshiba patents essential to DVD media.

Japanese electronics giant Toshiba has filed suit against Imation, Advanced Media, Glyphics Media, Hotan Corporation, and a range of other makers of recordable DVD media, alleging the companies do not have licenses to Toshiba patents necessary to meet the DVD specifications. According to Toshiba, the manufacturers have not executed licenses to patents essential to meeting the DVD format specifications either from the DVD6C Licensing Group or from Toshiba itself; Toshiba is seeking damages as well as an injunction to prohibit the sales or importation of infringing recordable DVD media in the United States.

The suit covers recordable DVD media sold under at least the Imation and Memorex brands, and possibly others. Eight companies are named in the suit, including five in the United States, two in Taiwan, and one in India; Toshiba alleges none of them have a license to U.S. patent 5,708,651, "Optical disk having reduced track pitch and optical disk playback apparatus containing the same." The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin.

"The infringement of Toshiba’s patents by these companies, has negatively affected Toshiba’s business, and also caused damage to the legitimate and licensed DVD product manufacturing and distribution business as a whole," the company said in a statement. "Through the filing of the lawsuit, Toshiba seeks to recover monetary damages, prevent future infringement, and/or secure agreements to respect Toshiba’s intellectual property rights in the future."

The DVD6C Licensing Group includes a consortium of companies who have patents related to the DVD format; it also includes Panasonic, Hitachi, JVC, Sanyo, Sharp, Samsung, and Warner Bros.