Well isn’t this a strange turn of events. After seemingly endless court battles and ongoing patent litigation between Immersion and Sony over rumble technology, the two companies have finally agreed to put their disagreements aside and entertain the possibility of bringing Immersion’s force feedback technology to future PlayStation products.
You may recall that despite Sony’s company line to the contrary, Immersions complaint against the company was the chief reason PlayStation 3 consumers were left without rumble in their Sixaxis controllers. This latest news could conceivably spell a future filled with vibrating wireless first party controllers for Sony’s latest console, though nothing official has been chiseled into stone just yet.
In a statement released today, Immersion officials revealed that the company will receive the amount of the judgment entered by the District Court, which includes damages, pre-judgment interest, costs, and interest, in addition to retaining compulsory license fees ordered by the District Court which were already paid.
Terms of the business agreement between the parties provide SCE with certain new rights with respect to Immersion’s patent portfolio. Additional financial terms are not being disclosed.
“We look forward to exploring with Immersion exciting new ways to bring the largest and best range of gameplay experiences to our customers,” said Kazuo Hirai, President and Group Chief Operating Officer, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. “We are very excited about our new partnership with Immersion and the potential for new and innovative products incorporating their technologies.”
Immersion CEO Victor Viegas added: “We are pleased to have put this litigation behind us. Our new business agreement with Sony Computer Entertainment is specifically intended to enable advanced vibration capability for the benefit of the PlayStation gaming community. We are happy to provide our technology in this regard and hope to make technical proposals very soon with respect to use of our technology in the PlayStation products.”
