News release
Zi successful in summary judgment defense to Tegic lawsuit
California court grants Zi partial summary judgment in its patent infringement defense - eZiText v 4.5 does not infringe on Tegic's patents
Calgary, AB (February 27, 2002) - Zi Corporation (NASDAQ: ZICA) (TSE: ZIC), a leading provider of intelligent interface solutions, is pleased to announce that the company has received a favorable order from the District Court for Northern California granting in part its motion for partial summary judgment. The order was granted to the company in its defense against the patent infringement action initiated by Tegic Communications, Inc., a subsidiary of AOL Time Warner, and Asian Communications PTY Ltd. The summary judgment order granted to Zi found, among other things, that:
As the court noted, "In response, Tegic has failed to submit any evidence raising a triable issue of fact with respect to version 4.5."
- Zi's eZiText product version 4.5 for alphabetic languages does not infringe on Tegic's patents; and
- Tegic can make no claim for damages based on price erosion or lost profits to the extent they are based on Zi's Chinese language products.
"With this decision, Zi can further advance its business plans within the North American marketplace, as the uncertainty caused by this lawsuit has been effectively removed, " said Michael E. Lobsinger, chairman and CEO of Zi Corporation. "The California court has validated our present business strategy and product offering, and we are now focused on moving forward in light of this favorable decision."
The court deferred decision on the validity of Tegic's patents until the trial, which is currently set for August 2002.
Click here to view a copy of the court order. (292KB PDF)
About Zi Corporation
Zi Corporation (www.zicorp.com) is a market-driven technology company delivering intelligent interface solutions to enhance the user experience of wireless and consumer technologies. The company's core technology product, eZiText connects people to short messaging, e-mail, e-commerce, Web browsing and similar applications in almost any written language. Zi supports its strategic partners from offices in Calgary, Beijing, Hong Kong, San Francisco, Shenzhen, Stockholm and Tokyo. A publicly traded company, Zi Corporation is listed on the NASDAQ National Market (ZICA) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (ZIC).
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For more information:
Media Inquiries:
Shawn Kelly
Corporate Communications Manager
Phone: 403 537 9770
skelly@zicorp.com
Investor Inquiries:
Dale Kearns
Chief Financial Officer
Phone: 403 233 8875
investor@zicorp.com
Website: www.zicorp.com