Broadsign Fights “Patent Troll” To Draw As Both Sides Drop Actions

January 17, 2019 by Dave Haynes

Montreal digital OOH software shop Broadsign has fought its way to a draw with a company widely labelled as a patent troll – getting released from current action from T-Rex Property AB while agreeing in turn to dismiss the counter lawsuit it filed against T-Rex.

A Broadsign press release says:

T-Rex acquired patents in 2006 relating to the use of technology for remote control of display information on outdoor public screens. In 2012, T-Rex started an aggressive infringement campaign by filing 59 lawsuits across the digital out-of-home industry. While Broadsign was never targeted by T-Rex, some of its clients were, and Broadsign chose to challenge T-Rex by filing a counter lawsuit on behalf of its customers.

“From the onset, we saw this type of aggressive patent trolling as a threat to the industry and were not willing to stand by while our clients opened their wallets to groundless intimidation,” says Burr Smith, Chairman and CEO of Broadsign, who led the counter suit against T-Rex.

“We decided to take immediate action and are delighted with this outcome, which favors our clients and the industry,”

The lengthy two-year legal process concluded this week with T-Rex dismissing all cases against Broadsign clients and releasing Broadsign and its clients from any future claims.  

Smith went into this a bit, I seem to recall, in a 2017 podcast interview I did with him during ISE. As far as I know he was the only company leader to fight instead of settle, though it has been some time since T-Rex filed any new actions:

Billboard Insider has been following T-Rex since it popped up and has a solid summary here.

  1. Yigit says:

    It is hard but possible. May the force be with you Broadsign.

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