DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Dusseldorf Appeals Court, Germany (Oberlandesgericht Düsseldorf) recently pronounced its decision dismissing all 12 appeals filed by Greek DVD Video disc replicator Digital Press Hellas S.A., formerly known as Odeon Cineplex S.A. The unsuccessful appeals by Digital Press Hellas tried to overturn a series of corresponding previous verdicts issued by a German district court (Landgericht Düsseldorf) which found that Digital Press Hellas infringed MPEG-2 patents owned by CIF Licensing, LLC; GE Technology Development, Inc.; Koninklijke Philips Electronics NV; Mitsubishi Electric Corporation; Panasonic Corporation; Sony Corporation; Thomson Licensing S.A.; The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York; and Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (JVC) (http://www.mpegla.com/Lists/MPEG%20LA%20News%20List/Attachments/203/n_08-10-14_pr.pdf). Those MPEG-2 patents are also included in the MPEG-2 Patent Portfolio License offered by MPEG LA.

As a result of the appeal dismissals, enforcement of the verdicts will require Digital Press Hellas to cease its distribution of DVD Video discs in Germany and to pay damages to the patent owners for past DVD Video disc distribution in Germany.

The MPEG-2 Standard is the core technology underlying the efficient creation, transmission, storage and display of digitized moving images and sound tracks on which DVD and other digital technologies are based; and the DVD-Video Standard (DVD Specifications for Read-Only Disc, Part 3: VIDEO SPECIFICATIONS) requires DVD Video discs to contain information formatted in accordance with the MPEG-2 Standard.

MPEG LA, LLC

MPEG LA is the world leader in alternative technology licenses, enabling users to acquire worldwide patent rights necessary for a technology standard or platform from multiple patent holders in a single transaction as an alternative to negotiating separate licenses. Wherever an independently administered one-stop patent license would provide a convenient marketplace alternative to assist users with implementation of their technology choices, the licensing model pioneered and employed by MPEG LA may provide a solution. Among MPEG LA’s licenses is one for MPEG-2 digital video compression that has helped produce the most widely employed standard in consumer electronics history. The MPEG-2 Patent Portfolio License, which includes more than 870 MPEG-2 essential patents in 57 countries, has more than 1,500 licensees accounting for most MPEG-2 products including set-top boxes, DVD players, digital television sets, personal computers and DVD Video discs in the current world market. MPEG LA is an independent licensing administrator; it is not related to any standards agency and is not an affiliate of any patent holder. For more information, please refer to http://www.mpegla.com.