Google Sued Over Talk

[Jeff]

A firm that holds patents for technology used in Internet voice calling is suing search giant Google for $5 billion over its Google Talk instant-messaging client, according to court papers.

Rates Technology Inc. (RTI), a small, New York company that holds patents to telecommunications technologies but does not sell products, filed suit in October against Google, claiming the Mountain View, California, company is using two technologies RTI has patented but has not licensed them.

The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in October, but surfaced first in published reports last week.

Cutting Costs

Google uses the two technologies, which are for minimizing the cost of long-distance telephone calls, in the VoIP service of its Google Talk VoIP client, according to court papers.

"Google's wrongful acts have damaged and will continue to damage RTI irreparably, and RTI has no adequate remedy at law for those wrongs and injuries," the company says in court papers.

Google has been notified of its patent infringement and given a chance to remedy the situation by licensing technology from RTI, "but has refused to do so," the company says in its court filing.

RTI is demanding a trial by jury to settle the suit, according to court papers.

Links

• via PC World
• More about Google Talk
• Download Google Talk

[Oreo]

Google seems to be getting into a lot of trouble lately with those things. I think I saw somewhere that news agencies were getting angry with google using their headlines or something to that affect...I don't remember where I saw it now...but I know I did see it. :) Interesting though...seems like they'll use their name to live down this one.

[MrEggsalad]

Ick, more crap for Google. Surprising, yet to me anyways, it's not. I mean, now they are gaining more and more power, seem to be getting just in as much trouble as Microsoft has a while ago.

[seb_thib_55]

I think the reason Google is getting in so much trouble now is because they are now so big that other websites are jealous so other companies/websites are finding a bunch of stuff that can make them shrink or shut down... Or even get a bunch of $$$$$ from them.

[Aqeel]

Everyone wants $$$ pie from them.