Sony And LG End Dispute Over Patents, Ink Licensing Deal

We spent quite a few posts in the last months covering a patent dispute between LG and Sony over four Blu-ray-related functions used in the PS3. The lawsuits affected sales of the console in the US and Europe in spring this year, and they came right after Sony brought a patent infringement claim (regarding cell phones) against LG to the U.S. International Trade Commission in late 2010.

But today both companies announced all is good now: LG and Sony have settled a total of 24 patent-infringement lawsuits with regard to TVs, Blu-ray technology and cell phones. According to Reuters, Sony and LG also inked a cross-licensing deal that covers all these devices (such a deal is often the end game in this kind of disputes and allows the parties involved to use each other’s patents without paying fees).