A federal court in Dallas has overturned a jury verdict against Nintendo that ordered the company to pay $10.1 million to iLife Technology for allegedly violating its patents to create the Wii Remote's motion tracking tech.
The case began back in December 2013, when iLife claimed hat Nintendo had violated six of its patents, including one that had been filed to protect its own motion-tracking technology.
Nintendo argued that the patents in question were invalid due to a “lack of an adequate written description,” but a Texas jury eventually sided with iLife and awarded the company $10.1 million.
After pledging to appeal the verdict, Nintendo has been backed by a federal court, which found that iLife was impermissibly trying to cover the broad concept of using motion sensors to detect motion. As such, the company’s patent has been deemed invalid and the $10.1 milline award against the Japanese console maker has been nullified.
"Nintendo has a long history of developing new and unique products, and we are pleased that, after many years of litigation, the court agreed with Nintendo," said Ajay Singh, Nintendo of America’s Deputy General Counsel. "We will continue to vigorously defend our products against companies seeking to profit off of technology they did not invent."