According to certain tech blogs a company called Hop-On has been granted a patent relating to a mobile phone with external speakers capable of playing MP3 tracks. The wording of the patent apparently covers an “MP3 phone with speakers on the side, in addition to front and side buttons to activate its camera/video features”.
Clearly most of the handsets on the market from the likes of Sony Ericsson, Nokia, Samsung & Motorola could be considered as infringing the patent. Hop-On were quick to announce that they will be asking for payments, in a written statement they commented “Most MP3 flip phones on the market today have speakers on the side of the phones. We will be seeking royalties from previous and future sales of this design; there have been millions of similar phones sold on the market.”
Whilst such action may seem legitimate, given the information we have about the patent it would be inconceivable for it to hold water. The number of mobile patents that companies like Nokia are granted run into the thousands and for them to have created phones without their patent lawyers applying for the relevant patents just wouldn’t happen.
Our bet is that this action will quietly die down.
