Sony, Vibration Tech Maker End Patent Dispute

Sony's video game unit and Immersion have ended their patent fight and signed a deal that opens the door to putting the latter's Rumble technology into the former's PlayStation 3, the companies said Thursday.
Rumble technology makes a video game controller vibrate so that action on the screen seems more real--for example, when a race car is off the track--and has been a key feature in controllers for Sony's market-dominating PlayStation 2 console.
Immersion successfully sued Sony for patent infringement, winning damages that now stand at $97.2 million, including interest.
The video game giant appealed the 2005 court decision and--in exchange for being allowed to continue selling games, consoles and controllers using the disputed technology--paid Immersion about $30.6 million in court-ordered licensing fees between July 2004 and the end of 2006.
Sony left Rumble features out its PS3 released in November, saying they didn't work with motion sensors in the game controllers. Video game fans were skeptical of the explanation and decried the move, complaining that the lack of tactile feedback made play less realistic.
Under the new agreement, Sony has agreed to pay Immersion's court-awarded damages. It will also pay Immersion 12 quarterly installments ending on Dec. 31, 2009, for a total of $22.5 million, in addition to certain other fees and royalty amounts, according to a regulatory filing.
Immersion Chief Executive Victor Viegas said in a statement that the company will "very soon" make technical proposals for the use of Rumble technology in the PS3.
Sony added that the conclusion of the patent litigation and the agreement will have no material impact on its consolidated earnings forecast announced on January 30.