SCUF has scored a major win in their patent infringement trial over Valve, with a jury awarding $US4 million to the third-party controller manufacturer over the sale of the Steam Controller.
The ruling adds onto the $2.53 million (1.6 million euros)fine Valve received for geo-blocking sales. But according to Law.com, the damages in the SCUF trial could rise even further after jurors found that Valve wilfully violated SCUFâs patent.
https://kotaku.com/valve-capcom-bethesda-fined-9-5-million-for-geo-bl-1846096211
The case centred on a patent SCUF received in 2013, and Valveâs initial demo of the Steam Controller at CES the following year. Ironburg Inventions â which is now owned by PC peripheral giant Corsair â informed Valve that the Steam Controller was in violation of the âread-side controls surfacesâ part of SCUFâs patent.
âValve did know that its conduct involved an unreasonable risk of infringement, but it simply proceeded to infringe anyway,â SCUFâs lawyers argued
According to a release from Corsair, the jury verdict was unanimous and opens the door âto a potential award of enhanced damages up to the statutory limit of treble damagesâ. That said, the Steam Controller has been out of production for almost two years now. And the controller didnât gain enough traction in market to prevent SCUFâs revenue and brand from growing to the point where it was acquired by Corsair
The trial has only just wrapped up, so itâs likely things will draw out a little bit further as Valve appeals the decision and fights any amendments to the ruling..
This story originally appeared on Kotaku Australia
