INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY: GOOGLE ACCUSED OF VIOLATING INTERNET TELEPHONY PATENTS.

Several telecoms operators or manufacturers, including French based Alcatel, have refused to pay and are currently facing litigation, confirmed Mr Weinberger. The case against Google was submitted "two months ago" when the well-known search engine also refused to acknowledge RTI.

Google is accused of having infringed two of RTI's patents in creating its "Google Talk" service which combines text and voice exchange. "We believe that the complaint is unfounded and we will defend our position vehemently" responded a spokesperson for Google, quoted in a press release. The complaint was registered with a federal court in Long Island, New York, where RTI has its base. No mention is made of the amount of damages or interest claimed, but Jerry Weinberger has threatened to ask for up to US$ 5 billion from Google should they refuse to agree to an amicable out of court settlement. This figure represents an estimate of Google's earnings from the use of these patented technologies for a period of four years, Mr Weinberger's estimate of the length of a trial.

With regards to Alcatel, the RTI President has indicated that the French group has been the object of a similar complaint for two years, under investigation in Los Angeles...