
Malikie is suing Canon over Wi-Fi in cameras and printers. Here is the recap of the Malikie Innovations v. Canon Patent lawsuit:
Overview In mid-November 2025, Irish patent-holding company Malikie Innovations Ltd. (along with its investment partner and beneficiary Key Patent Innovations Ltd.) filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Canon Inc. and its U.S. subsidiary Canon USA Inc.. The case accuses Canon of using Wi-Fi-related technologies in its products without a license. These patents originated from BlackBerry Ltd., which sold a large portfolio of wireless communication patents to Malikie in 2023 as part of a deal worth up to $900 million.
Filing Details
- Date filed: November 12, 2025
- Court: U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas (Waco division, a popular venue for patent cases)
- Case number: 1:25-cv-01826
Patents Asserted (all formerly owned by BlackBerry):
- U.S. Patent No. 7,747,934
- U.S. Patent No. 9,218,434
- U.S. Patent No. 10,484,870
- U.S. Patent No. 10,003,730
- U.S. Patent No. 9,143,323 (The article mentions “half a dozen,” but sources consistently list five; the complaint may clarify six total.)
These patents generally cover aspects of wireless communication protocols, such as how devices connect to Wi-Fi networks, share data wirelessly (e.g., photos from a camera to a phone), and related functionalities in client-server Wi-Fi setups.
Accused Products
- Canon’s digital cameras with built-in Wi-Fi (e.g., models that allow wireless image transfer)
- Wi-Fi-enabled printers
- Canon’s mobile apps (e.g., Canon Camera Connect app) that facilitate wireless connections
The core allegation is that these products infringe by implementing standard Wi-Fi features for networking, file transfer, and remote control — features now common in most modern cameras and printers.
Background and Pre-Lawsuit Efforts Malikie first contacted Canon in March 2024 to offer a license for its Wi-Fi patent portfolio. Despite multiple letters, emails, and requests for meetings over the following 18+ months, no licensing agreement was reached, leading to the lawsuit.
Relief Sought As is standard in these cases, Malikie is seeking:
- Monetary damages (including potentially enhanced damages for willful infringement)
- A permanent injunction (though rarely granted in patent cases post-eBay)
- Attorneys’ fees and costs
Current Status (as of November 19, 2025) The lawsuit is brand new — filed just one week ago. Canon has not yet publicly responded or filed an answer. No hearings or rulings have occurred yet. Given the venue and the nature of the claims, the case could take 1–3 years to resolve, potentially ending in a settlement (common in patent litigation involving former BlackBerry patents).
Context on Malikie Malikie is not a practicing company but a patent assertion entity (often called a “non-practicing entity” or NPE) focused on monetizing the old BlackBerry wireless patent portfolio. It has filed similar Wi-Fi and wireless communication lawsuits against companies like Nintendo, Acer, Toast, Vantiva, and others in 2024–2025. Some of Malikie’s patents have faced challenges (e.g., ex parte reexaminations by groups like Unified Patents questioning validity), but none directly affect this Canon case yet.
In short: This is a fresh patent troll-style suit targeting standard Wi-Fi implementation in Canon’s imaging products. It likely won’t immediately impact consumers or product availability, but it adds to the ongoing wave of litigation around legacy BlackBerry wireless patents. If you’re a Canon user, no immediate action is needed — these cases rarely disrupt the market directly.
BLACK FRIDAY
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