ALAMEDA, Calif., June 16 /PRNewswire/ --
Geoworks Corporation (Nasdaq: GWRX), a pioneer in mobile data communications
services and technologies, today announced that it has filed a counter suit in
the United States District Court in San Francisco against Phone.com. The
Geoworks lawsuit, served to Phone.com yesterday, seeks to demonstrate that the
activity of Phone.com and its licensees utilizing Phone.com's UP Server Suite
and UP Browser infringes on Geoworks' Flexible User Interface patent (US
Patent #5,327,529).
On April 25, 2000, Phone.com filed a lawsuit against Geoworks contesting
the validity of the Geoworks patent which was granted in 1994. Geoworks
responded to Phone.com's lawsuit by denying the charges of invalidity and
counter-sued Phone.com for infringement. The Geoworks patent contains the
official seal of the U.S. Patent Office and under U.S. patent law it is
presumed valid and enforceable. If Phone.com chooses to pursue its
litigation, it must overturn the work of U.S. Patent Office and the legal
presumption of validity. This is the first lawsuit involving the critical
patented technology underlying the WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)
specification, the de facto worldwide standard for wireless Internet access
devices.
Geoworks maintains its belief that the patent is implicated by products
and services using the WAP specification. Geoworks holds this patent for core
technology for wireless communication devices, including mobile phones, that
are based on the WAP specification and placed into the stream of commerce in
the United States and Japan.
Geoworks joined the WAP Forum in April, 1998 and declared its essential
intellectual property rights in accordance with the WAP Forum's policies in
May, 1999. On January 19, 2000, Geoworks announced a fair and reasonable
licensing program in accordance with the WAP Forum's policies.
About Geoworks
Geoworks Corporation is a pioneer in wireless data communications services
and technologies for the business and consumer markets. The company's mission
is to enable mobile Internet access in the business to business and business
to consumer markets. Geoworks' Mobile ASP(TM) solution utilizes a flexible
combination of its proprietary Premion Server+ technology and its mobile media
expertise to enable businesses to reach their mobile customers with relevant
and timely information. By licensing its essential Intellectual Property
Rights for the Wireless Application Protocol (WAP), Geoworks plays a central
role in advancing the worldwide market for mobile devices that enable people
to easily and instantly access and interact with information and services.
Based in Alameda, California, the company has international offices in Sweden,
Japan and the United Kingdom, and can be found on the World Wide Web at
http://www.geoworks.com.
In keeping with U.S. law, Geoworks notes that this press release includes
forward-looking statements, including the emergence of, and Geoworks'
participation in, the mobile data and technology licensing and services
markets. Actual results may vary significantly due to various risks and
uncertainties. Those include, but are not limited to, the following: i) the
mobile data and technology services market may not emerge to the degree or
timing anticipated; and ii) new technologies and new services are inherently
subject to development, timing and consumer acceptance risks. Additional
information is available in the Risk Factors and Business discussions in the
Company's Forms 10- K, 10-Q and other filings available from the Company or
from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
SOURCE Geoworks Corporation
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Related links:
http://www.geoworks.com
CONTACT:
Michele Locurcio of Red Whistle
Communications, 415-616-6126, or mlocurcio@redwhistle.com, for
Geoworks Corporation; or Bob Bogard of Geoworks Corporation,
510-814-5811, or bbogard@geoworks.com
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