Nintendo suit dismissed, says it won’t ‘succumb to patent trolls’

A patent suit against Nintendo has been dismissed by a Maryland district judge, the company announced today.

March 2, 2012 1:15 PM3

Nintendo announced that it has secured another legal victory today, after a Maryland US District judge dismissed a patent infringement suit against the company. The suit from IA Labs CA, LLC had alleged that various Nintendo products including Wii Fit, Wii Fit Plus, and the Balance Board accessory infringed on one of its patents.

“We refuse to succumb to patent trolls,” said Nintendo’s senior VP of legal & general counsel Rick Flamm.

Nintendo points out this is the third consecutive patent victory this year, after Nintendo’s hardware success apparently attracted lawsuits. The patent itself (7,331,226) is simply for a “force measurement system for an isometric exercise device.” IA Labs alleged that the infringement was willful, claiming that Nintendo had met with the company in December 2007. Wii Fit was released in Japan on December 1, 2007, so the time disparity alone makes IAL’s willful infringement claim dubious.

“Nintendo has a passionate tradition of developing innovative products while respecting the intellectual property rights of others,” said Flamm. “We vigorously defend patent lawsuits when we firmly believe that we have not infringed another party’s patent.”