*NEWS*HP ATTACKS WALGREEN & OFFICEMAX INK

[Anonymous]

HP attacks Walgreen & OfficeMax ink
Hewlett-Packard
said Wednesday that it has discovered that retailers Walgreen Co. and
OfficeMax have sold printer inks in their stores that infringe HP’s
patents.Inks found in both Walgreens and OfficeMax refilling service
stations infringe HP patents, the company said. HP is “working” with
both retailers to resolve the infringement, it said.When asked if both
retailers would be barred from selling third-party inks, an HP
spokeswoman replied via email, “In response to your question, both
retailers can do whatever they want as long as they don’t infringe an
HP patent.”
The infringing inks in question were not named.
In
May, HP’s Imaging and Printing group reported an operating profit of
$1.0 billion and revenue of $6.7 billion for HP’s second fiscal quarter
ended April 30. The unit’s operating profit rose from 12.7 percent of
HP’s overall revenue a year ago, to its current point of representing
15.5 percent of the company’s overall revenue.”HP protects its
intellectual property wherever infringements are found,” said Pradeep
Jotwani, senior vice president, Supplies, Imaging and Printing Group at
HP, in a statement. “Decades of research and development investment by
HP have resulted in more than 4,000 patents related to printing
supplies, allowing us to deliver the superior quality and reliable
printing experience associated with original HP supplies.”The patent
infringements were discovered as part of ongoing worldwide testing and
enforcement efforts within HP that are designed to protect the
company’s intellectual property rights, HP said. Over the past year,
the same initiative has uncovered ink patent infringements by other
companies that offer generic ink supplies through refilling stations or
private label brands, the company said.

[Author]

June 22, 2006 at 12:24 PM