Gemstar Sues Paul Allen's Digeo

Gemstar-TV Guide International’s legal team is back on the offensive, filing a patent infringement suit Friday against Paul Allen’s Digeo.
The suit, filed in a California federal court, alleges that Digeo’s Moxi interactive program guide infringes Gemstar’s IPG patents.
Gemstar attorneys said the company decided to sue Digeo after the company failed to reach a license agreement with the interactive-TV company and after Digeo filed an antitrust suit against Gemstar.
“We have attempted over an extended period of time to engage in patent-licensing discussions with Digeo regarding the Moxi guide. Digeo’s refusal to negotiate a patent license with us and its decision to file suit against us left us no option except to pursue legal remedies to protect the value of our intellectual property,” Gemstar executive vice president and general counsel Stephen Kay said in a prepared statement Friday.
Digeo officials couldn’t be reached for comment by deadline.
Gemstar -- which dominates the IPG sector with its TV Guide Interactive product -- is no stranger to patent suits. Most of Gemstar’s suits have ended in settlements, including deals reached in recent years with EchoStar Communications, Scientific Atlanta, Motorola and Pioneer.