NHL streaming service hit with patent claim
The National Hockey League (NHL) in the US has been sued for allegedly infringing a patent through its provision of a live streaming service.
According to a lawsuit filed by Affinity Labs, of Texas, the NHL’s GameCenter Live service, which offers live streaming of its games to computers and smartphones, infringes a patent the company owns.
In a lawsuit filed at the US District Court for the Western District of Texas, Affinity, which calls itself an “innovation consulting firm”, claimed that the NHL service infringes US patent number 7,970,379, called “Providing broadcast content”.
The GameCenter service, according to Affinity’s complaint, “is configured to enable a wireless handheld device to receive a streaming signal of a regionally broadcast NHL game on the wireless device, even when the ... device is outside of the region of the regionally broadcast NHL game”.
The Texas-based company said its ‘379 patent and other related patent applications show that it has protected a “number of” inventions relating to the creation of a “new media ecosystem” that features a portable electronic audio device, such as a smart phone.
In the complaint, filed earlier this month, the NHL is accused of directly infringing at least claims 1, 5, 7, and 10 to 13 of the '379 patent by “having and continuing” to make, use, sell, and offer for sale a broadcast system, including the GameCenter service.
“NHL knowingly encourages and intends for subscribers and end users to directly infringe the ‘379 patent … by instructing and advertising that end users and subscribers stream NHL games for viewing on a wireless handheld device,” Affinity’s complaint said.
The company added: “Affinity Labs has been injured and has been caused significant financial damage as a direct and proximate result of NHL’s infringement of the ‘379 patent.”
Affinity is seeking damages as well as an “order enjoining” the NHL from infringing the patent.
Neither the NHL nor Affinity responded to a request for comment.
