LOS ANGELES SmartMetric, which says it owns the patent to critical technology switching EMV transactions, yesterday said it will appeal Tuesday’s federal court ruling rejecting its $13-billion infringement claim against Visa and MasterCard.
SmartMetric said after reviewing the entire ruling handed down by the District Court, and following discussion and deliberation with its legal counsel, it is of the opinion that serious legal and reversible error has been made in the ruling. SmartMetric believes it has solid grounds to see that the decision is reversed and it plans to promptly appeal the ruling and seek a reversal of the trial court's decision.
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued a motion for summary judgment requested by Visa and MasterCard, ruling the patent firm could not prove the card networks used the same technology and methods as those described in the company’s patent.
Two years ago SmartMetric sued Visa and MasterCard for an estimated $13.4 billion in damages, claiming it holds the patent on a system enabling automatic connection to a network. EMV cards include a microchip instead of a magnetic strip to access a payment system. The SmartMetric patent pertains to the process by which the payment system selects a network for a card transaction.
Credit unions and banks are rapidly moving toward EMV cards, which are in wide use in Europe. SmartMetric is asking the court for 25% of the savings Visa and MasterCard would accrue on EMV cards.
Visa and MasterCard have been tapping their credit union and bank owners to fund litigation settlements. The two card companies are the only stocks credit unions are authorized to own.
