The story behind Discovery’s lawsuit over the Kindle
Discovery Communications chairman and founder John Hendricks waited 17 years for the moment when Amazon and Sony would battle for dominance in the world of portable electronic book readers.
That’s how long ago Hendricks filed for a patent on what he called the Everybook, which now appears to be quite similar to the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Reader. Now Discovery has sued Amazon, alleging patent infringement.
The lawsuit came after Discovery asked Sony and Amazon to pay royalties and both balked.
It took until 2007 — the same year the Kindle hit the market — for Discovery to be granted U.S. Patent No. 7,298,851 for its “electronic book security and copyright protection system.” The Sony Reader came out in October 2006.
The back story related to Discovery’s book-reading device would make for a page-turner in its own right.