Virgin Entertainment, Virgin Megastore Online and Virgin Megastore are Charged with Patent Infringement by NeoMedia Technologies, Inc.
Monday January 5, 9:37 am ET
FT. MYERS, Fla., Jan. 5, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- NeoMedia Technologies, Inc. (OTC BB:NEOM.OB - News), a developer and international marketer of software and patented technologies which link products, print, and physical objects directly to targeted online data, said today that it has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Virgin(r) Entertainment Group, Inc., Virgin Megastore Online and Virgin Megastore (Virgin).
The Complaint for Patent Infringement and Damages was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, by Baniak Pine & Gannon, a Chicago intellectual property law firm retained by NeoMedia to protect its patents and IP portfolio. The Complaint claims that Virgin has infringed four of NeoMedia's patents -- U.S. Patents Nos. 5,933,829, 5,978,773, 6,108,656, and 6,199,048.
The Complaint alleges that the Virgin Megaplay Stations located in Virgin's Megastores infringe NeoMedia's patents by using Virgin's Megascan technology to allow customers to scan UPC codes from in-store CDs and DVDs to access Internet-based product information, such as music and movie previews, and album and video art. The Complaint also alleges that Virgin had notice of NeoMedia's patents since the latter part of 2002 or before, yet it continued with its infringing activities.
NeoMedia's Complaint seeks compensatory damages for Virgin's infringement, with those damages to be trebled due to the willful and wanton nature of the infringement. NeoMedia also seeks to preliminarily and permanently enjoin Virgin from its infringing activities.
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