Theres the article.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090706-713955.html

Can't see it. using wii.

sorry i don't know why it won't become a link.

SAN FRANCISCO (Dow Jones)--Some of the most popular products from Apple Inc. (AAPL), Sony Corp. (SNE) and Nintendo Co. Ltd. (NTDOY) are the target of a new patent infringement lawsuit.

Shared Memory Graphics LLC, based in Newport Beach, Calif., alleges Apple iPods and iPod Touch music and video players, Nintendo's motion-controlled Wii and Sony PSP and PS2 game consoles uses two graphic accelerator systems patented by the company.

The two patents describe ways in which microprocessors fine-tune graphics by balancing the flow of data from various sources.

Apple had no comment on the lawsuit filed late last week in a U.S. District Court in Arkansas. Nintendo and Sony didn't immediately reply to requests for comment.

The patents were originally owned by Alliance Semiconductor Corp., which was founded in 1985, and became "renowned worldwide" for making faster memory and graphics semiconductors for computers, according to the lawsuit. At one time, the filing states, Alliance had 144 employees, and generated tens of millions of dollars in net revenue.

But after several years of substantial operating losses, the company in 2005 transitioned to a holding company, and ultimately sold the patents to what is now Shared Memory Graphics.

The suit, filed in a U.S. District Court in Arkansas, demands unspecified monetary damages

The litigation targets several high profile products. Nintendo's Wii, even though sales are slowing from their initial hectic pace, continues to a leading seller. Apple's iPod Touch, combined with the iPhone, are both major profit and revenue drivers at Apple. The same can be said for Sony's PS2 and PSP game consoles.

Apple shares were down 1%, to $138.61, on Monday. Sony was up 0.3%, to $25.27, and Nintendo added 0.9% to $34.40.

-By Ben Charny; Dow Jones Newswires; 415-765-8230; ben.charny@...

Can't read the whole article as I don't have a subscription to WSJ. So can't comment on it weather it holds any water or not, but I did submit it to digg and if I remember correctly if it makes to the front page then the article is opened up for everyone.

I did a quick search on Yahoo! News and got this:

The two patents, originally owned by Alliance Semiconductor, describe ways in which microprocessors fine-tune graphics by balancing the flow of data from various sources.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the suit was filed at the US District Court of Arkansas and demands unspecified monetary damages.

The plaintiff's attorneys are fighting for a "reasonable royalty" from Apple, Sony, Nintendo, along with enhanced damages from Sony.

Source.

Thanks

Why the hell didn't they do this years ago, when they figured out it was being used in PS2, why wait years until loads of other companies are using the tech and then you have to sue them all?

Ah right, gotcha.

@ Machu: Haha that's big bussiness for you.
@ everyoneelse: The whole article is on the 4th post.

You'd think big companies like nintendo, sony, and apple would look farther into these things before hand.

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@ChickenBrutus- Just had to try to out do him didn't you? Was funny though.

I can't take any credit for it...I'm quoting a skit from The State. Vendetta reminded me, and I thought it was one of those rare skits that works just as good written down as it does in performance. V. wins for originality, no question.

@ChickenBrutus- Oh. Nowonder it sounded like it could be on tv.

@ChickenBrutus: Good thing you cleared that up! I was gonna call Shyster & Shyster and sue your ass for infringing on my IP!

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Also, I used to have two umbrellas.

Vendetta- LOL!!! Good one!

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Your sister sounds like my kind of guy!

I'm working my way through the DVD set as well. It's really, really brilliant stuff; a few of the skits show their age, but overall it's held up remarkably well. They loaded it up with great extras, too...definitely a good buy. I think I'll be giving some out to friends as Xmas gifts, too.

Howd this turn into a discussion of the State DVD?