Much like Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Amazon’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Kindle Fire tablet might also be falling prey to patent infringement lawsuits, with the company recently facing a suit by Smartphone Technologies LLC for allegedly violating four of its patents. This places Amazon as a new entrant into the patent wars being faced by many mobile device giants such as Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM).
We currently have a price estimate of $240 for Amazon’s stock, which is about even with the current market price.
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Patent Lawsuits are on Fire
The mobile device market today has also become a breeding ground for opportunistic firms who are trying to make a buck by filing and licensing patents. These firms are lovingly called patent trolls.
The company in question – Smartphone Technologies LLC – is widely believed to fall in this category. [1] Given the hype and subsequent popularity of the Kindle Fire, it is not surprising that the tablet has run into similar patent troubles being faced by both Android-based devices and the iPad. What is needed urgently is for leading product developers and U.S. regulators to formulate much-needed legal reforms to stop these practices which are bound to hurt innovation in the long run. [2]
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