[Geekcop]

This sounds like the same problems RIM ran into a year or two back. There are companies that are called patent holding companies that don't actually produce anything but pull the same kind of c++p that is mentioned above. They hold, or claim to hold, a generalized patent for some product, idea, fleeting thought, etc. In RIM's case, this company (whose name escapes me) claimed to have a patent on the technology upon which RIM based the BB. Mind you, they didn't patent the actual device or even the software, but just the technology. A lot of these types of cases get filed in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, since that court is known to have a "rocket docket." This means once cases get filed here, they move quickly.
If any of our members are attorneys, they may be able to shed some more light on what seems to be quasi-legal extortion