US: Stryker countersues rivals in IP spat

Stryker Corporation, a maker of medical equipment, is reportedly pursuing legal action against rivals Medtronic, Orthophoenix, and IP Navigation for what it considers “patent troll” behavior.

Stryker filed a legal complaint against the firms in Delaware, claiming that the companies engaged in a conspiracy to sue Stryker for patent infringement. According to the filing, Medtronic and Orthophoenix conspired together by acquiring hundreds of patents by Medtronic-owned Kyphon one day after Orthophoenix was founded. When Orthophoenix and IP Nav attempted to negotiate Stryker to license those Kyphon patent, Orthophoenix sued Stryker for patent infringement.

Medtronic knew that Orthophoenix and/or IP Nav would attempt to extract unwarranted licensing royalties or other monetary payments from Medtronic’s competitors,” Stryker argued in its filing, by threatening legal action over patent infringement.

Stryker’s countersuit alleges that those Kyphon patents are invalid.

Full content: Med Device Online

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