HP fires patent salvo across Acer's bow

By Tom Sanders on Mar 28, 2007 2:14 PM
Filed under Hardware

Taiwanese PC and laptop maker accused of infringing five patents.

HP has filed a lawsuit against rival PC and laptop maker Acer, accusing the Taiwanese firm of infringing on five of its patents.

In a legal complaint filed on Tuesday, HP demanded unspecified damages as well as a permanent injunction that prevents Acer from further infringing on the patents. The case was filed in the Eastern District of Texas. Courts in the area are known as friendly towards patent owners.

The HP patents cover technologies ranging from optical storage media to a way to improve energy efficiency by scaling back the processor frequency.

The company furthermore argued that Acer's infringement was "willful", meaning that the company continued to sell its computers even though it knew about the patent issues. If proven, wilfull patent violation can lead to punitive damages.

Acer didn't return a phone call seeking comment.