Readers in Sacramento have heard enough stories about Eastman Kodak Co. possibly filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy that they probably have developed the idea that the venerable film and camera company is circling the drain.

Regardless of the company's financial position, it still has some kick in it left. Kodak recently sued Apple, HTC, Fujifilm, Samsung and HTC after those companies allegedly infringed on patents that Kodak owns.

The genesis of this business litigation centers around five patents that help cameras (such as those on smartphones) send images without needing to compress or save them. Kodak claims the companies it is suing have used the technology without obtaining the required permission from Kodak. Kodak has said that Nokia, Motorola and LG have all paid a license fee to Kodak and so are allowed to use the patented technology.

This issue is especially important to Kodak because it has reportedly been shopping its portfolio of 1,100 digital imaging patents around in the hopes of raising millions of dollars in quick cash. Obviously, if other companies are getting away with unauthorized use of Kodak's patented technology, then the whole portfolio is not worth much. That could explain why Kodak is fighting so hard.

It will be interesting to see whether these suits make it to trial or get settled out of court. As we observed, Kodak has a big stake in this fight, so it is not an issue that is likely to be resolved easily.

Source: Forbes, "Kodak Sues Samsung Alleging Infringement Of 5 Patents," Eric Savitz, Jan. 18, 2012