ITC issues partial ruling against Kodak in patent-infringement case

Today was the day that the ITC was supposed to make a ruling about the patent infringement case it filed against Apple and RIM in early 2010, and sure enough, the word is out. The commission is upholding an earlier ruling by one of its judges which basically threw out the main image preview patent claim made by Kodak.

However, two other claims have been restructured by the ITC, siding with Kodak on one claim and not making a determination on a third. The entire case is being sent back to lower courts for further review, giving Eastman Kodak Co. a remote possibility of prevailing with the other claims.

Kodak was hoping for up to US$1 billion in damages, a sum that would let the beleaguered former photo giant restructure and develop products that would help it compete in the world of digital photography. With the case going back to the lower courts and the major claim essentially dead in the water, it's unlikely that the company will win much -- if anything -- in this patent infringement battle.