Epson Preliminary Ruling Inkjet Cartridges
Epson is one step closer to closing the books on a case against third-party ink cartridge manufacturers that make and sell products to work with Epson printers. The company has won a preliminary ruling saying that 24 aftermarket print cartridge manufacturers do indeed infringe on Epson's patents, and they face orders that would bar them from selling the infringing products in the US.
Epson had filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission in February of 2006 accusing the companies of manufacturing and selling ink cartridges that came too close to Epson's own cartridge designs. The company had begun to file federal lawsuits against the companies, and many of them decided to settle with Epson rather than fight the case.
The prevailing business model in the printer manufacturing business has long been hinged on ink and toner sales, but manufacturers have seen their profits shrink as third parties move in to sell ink and toner products closer to their own manufacturing costs. In a rather high-profile case, Lexmark battled North Carolina-based Static Control Components (SCC) over the manufacture of printing components meant to lock-out third party providers. In that case, Lexmark had tried to use the DMCA to argue that SCC had infringed on Lexmark's intellectual property, but that approach failed.
