Gateway Sues HP Over Patent Issues
Computer maker Gateway Inc. filed a lawsuit against bigger rival Hewlett-Packard Co. on Monday alleging patent infringement related to multimedia functions of desktop and laptop computers.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in San Diego, came a week after HP filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission a complaint accusing Gateway of violating seven HP patents.
HP sued Gateway in the same San Diego court earlier this year, claiming infringement of 10 other HP patents.
In papers filed Monday, Poway, Calif.-based Gateway rejected all of HP’s charges and said HP was in violation of five Gateway patents involving computerized television, a method for monitoring computer operations and other areas.
Gateway’s suit seeks unspecified royalties and legal fees and was prompted by HP’s complaints, Gateway spokesman Ted Ladd said.
“We are disappointed that HP has chosen to travel this road, and feel we have no choice but to respond in kind,” Ladd said. “We’re really going step for step with them in this dispute. We actually believe that HP has much more at risk than Gateway in this lawsuit, particularly because of the scale and scope of their products.”
Joe Beyers, vice president of intellectual property licensing for Palo Alto-based HP, said that Gateway’s action was “to be expected” and that HP was not worried. “We see it as a typical negotiation process,” Beyers said.
HP’s complaint is against Gateway’s desktop, notebook and server computers and covers diverse areas such as cursor display and power management.
Gateway lost $526 million last year on revenue of $3.4 billion. HP earned $2.54 billion on revenue of $73.06 billion in its fiscal year ended in October.
Separately Monday, Gateway restated its first-quarter results, saying its loss was $172 million, or 51 cents a chare.
The restatement, which was expected, means Gateway lost $6 million more than reported last month because of costs related to settling a separate patent-infringement case against a company that Gateway declined to name, but was not HP. First-quarter sales remained $868 million.
Gateway shares fell 15 cents to $4.20 on the New York Stock Exchange on Monday and remained unchanged in after-market trading. HP shares declined 8 cents to $19.92 on the same exchange during regular trading and an additional 2 cents after hours.
