Kudelski acts against Netflix

OpenTV has filed a patent suit against Netflix in the District Court of the Hague in the Netherlands.

In it, the company alleges that Netflix “infringes its patents and is seeking, among other relief, to enjoin Netflix from further infringement by its recently launched service in the Netherlands.”

OpenTV is owned by Kudelski Group, and according to Joe Chernesky, senior VP, intellectual property and innovation at Kudelski, “The Group has invested billions of dollars over the past several decades in innovation and R&D and has successfully brought its technologies to market through advanced solutions, technology transfer and IP licensing.”

He added: “The Group remains committed to protecting its substantial and ongoing investment in innovation for the benefit of the digital video ecosystem.”

Kudelski previously acted against Netflix on behalf of OpenTV in the US, with the District Court for the District of Delaware, claiming patent infringement of seven US patents late last year.

At issue are a collection of patents related to content delivery and DRM which Kudelski says Netflix has refused to license from it. At the time, Kudelski said that it had been negotiating unsuccessfully with Netflix for twelve months. (The full text of the OpenTV case in the US is availabe as PDF download here)

Netflix was launched in the Netherlands in September.

In the US case, the seven patents OpenTV asserts Netflix infringes are US Patent Nos.:
- 6,018,768, “Enhanced Video Programming System and Method for Incorporating and Displaying Retrieved Integrated Internet Information Segments”;
- 6,233,736, “Media Online Service Access System and Method”;
- 7,055,169, “Supporting Common Interactive Television Functionality Through Presentation Engine Syntax”;
- 7,409,437, “Enhanced Video Programming System and Method for Incorporating and Displaying Retrieved Integrated Internet Information Segments”;
- 7,490,346, “Digital Television Application Protocol for Interactive Television”;
- 7,949,722, “Enhanced Video Programming System and Method Utilizing User-Profile Information”; and
- 8,107,786, “Systems and Methods to Modify Playout or Playback.”