US Court finds against Agfa CTP patents

According to a Creo press release the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts has ruled that six Agfa patents for computer-to-plate (CTP) technology — which Agfa had asserted against Creo — are unenforceable due to acts of inequitable conduct. The ruling determined that Agfa failed to disclose known material information to the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

Agfa has yet to comment on the case and may appeal the findings.

The company originally applied for and received patents on multi-cassette plate loaders for its CTP devices. In 2000, it launched the lawsuit, claiming that the design of the Creo CTP autoloaders infringed on Agfa’s patents. In defence, Creo asserted that the patents were unenforceable because Agfa intentionally deceived the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) when applying for and obtaining its patents.

The Court ruled that Agfa’s patent agents and engineers intentionally withheld material information and intentionally misrepresented the state of the prior art for multiple-cassette CTP systems.

The Court also ruled that this is an exceptional case, meaning that Creo is entitled to recover a portion of the attorneys’ fees and expenditures associated with proving inequitable conduct by Agfa.

“We are extremely pleased with this ruling as it supports what Creo has maintained all along. Agfa’s patents would never have been issued had Agfa told the Patent Office the complete facts on the development of automated CTP technology. This is a victory for the entire industry as we have now eliminated these Agfa patents from the competitive landscape,” said Amos Michelson, chief executive officer, Creo.