Netflix accused of infringing TV streaming patent
Netflix is facing a legal battle after it was accused of infringing a patent formerly owned by British Telecom (BT) that was designed to protect copyrighted data from being redistributed.
The TV and film streaming service has been hit with a lawsuit by US-based Copy Protection, a limited liability company in Connecticut.
In a lawsuit filed at the US District Court for the District of Delaware, Copy Protection says it is the owner of US patent 7,079,649, originally developed by BT.
The patent was granted in 2006 and is assigned to Copy Protection, enabling the company to assert its claims and seek damages for infringement, the complaint says.
According to its abstract, the patent, called Copy Protection of Data, downloads data from a server over the Internet.
The downloaded data is then protected, by encryption and hashing, in order to prevent unauthorised copying from a client.
Copy Protection said Netflix infringes the patent through its "Watch Instantly" streaming services, which include a component that prevents content from being stolen and its customers from copying or saving the content.
The company said it wrote to David Hyman, general counsel at Netflix, in December last year to negotiate a license on reasonable terms but received no response.
California-based Netflix has around 44 million subscribers and operates in 41 countries.
“Its customers can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on nearly any Internet-connected screen,” the complaint said.
It adds: “Netflix had actual knowledge of the patent since on or about December 16, 2013 and its acts of infringement since at least the time of actual knowledge are wilful and deliberate. This action, therefore, is ‘exceptional.’
“Copy Protection has been damaged by the infringement of Netflix and is suffering and will continue to suffer irreparable harm and damage as a result of this infringement unless such infringement is enjoined by this court,” the complaint said.
Copy Protection is seeking an injunction preventing Netflix from infringing the patent as well as damages and legal fees.
Netflix was not immediately available for comment.
