News
Harmonix requests continuation of Gibson suit
Rob Hughes Nov 3 2009, 10:10am
Patent case goes on at the request of the defendant
The patent suit brought by Gibson against Harmonix Music and other parties related to Guitar Hero and Rock Band is to continue after Harmonix and a group of retailers asked a Tennessee court to continue proceedings of the case against them, MMR magazine has reported.
This followed a decision by the US Patent and Trademark Office to re-examine the patent. When the USPTO recently looked into the patent again, it changed the definition of "musical instrument" to include the characteristics of being "adapted for making musical sounds" and "the instrument audio signal comprising an electrical signal output by the musical instrument that varies in response to operation of the instrument by the user of the system."
This move by Harmonix that, at once, might seem a little odd, is likely to be based on the belief that, in light of the new definition outlined above, the case will be resolved in its favour, at which point Harmonix will file a motion for summary judgment of non-infringement.
