LG, Sony end patent spat

PanARMENIAN.Net - The bitter patent-infringement battle between LG and Sony has come to an end.

According to CNET news, LG spokeswoman said that the two companies have dropped their lawsuits and signed a "cross-licensing deal." The terms of that deal were not disclosed.

The dispute between the companies started late last year when Sony filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission, requesting it ban the sale of LG phones in the U.S. Sony alleged that LG violated patents in the company's Lotus Elite, Neon, and Rumor 2 phones, among others.

In February of this year, LG fired back, saying that the Blu-ray player in the PlayStation 3 violated patents it held. One patent referenced the way in which Blu-ray players reproduce data from a disc, while the other covered the "reproduction of multiple data streams" by way of multiple camera angles. LG asked the ITC to ban the sale of the PlayStation 3 in the U.S.

As the complaints spilled over into Europe, LG was able to score a 10-day import ban on the PlayStation 3 in the Netherlands. However, temporary judgments aside, neither company was ever able to secure a standing victory in their complaints.

Although one patent dispute has ended, many more are still being waged. Apple, Samsung, HTC, Google, Oracle, and other big tech companies are embroiled in high-profile patent disputes of one form or another.