The lawsuit alleges the companies have products including digital cameras, camcorders, voice recorders and mobile phones that infringe four e.Digital patents:

• US5491774: Handheld record and playback device with flash memory
• US5742737: Method for recording voice messages on flash memory in a hand held recorder
• US5787445: Operating system including improved file management for use in devices utilizing flash memory as main memory
• US5839108: Flash memory file system in a handheld record and playback device

Some of the patents cover a lot of basic ground and have the potential to touch a large number of gadget makers, if the lawsuit is upheld. For instance, the '774 patent describes a solid state recording device with a control switch and microphone. The '108 patent covers memory being broken into a number of blocks in which data is stored.

E.Digital is asking to bar the companies from further infringement, unspecified compensatory damages and additional monetary relief.

"Digital recording on to flash memory has become a standard in portable electronic products," stated senior veep of e.Digital, Robert Putnam. "e.Digital created and patented important intellectual property in the use and utilization of flash memory in portable electronics products that we believe is being widely used in cell phones, cameras, camcorders, PDA's and other popular devices without our consent."

"We consider our Flash-R patent portfolio essential to many consumer electronic products and believe the number of companies infringing our portfolio are large with annual sales of what we believe are infringing products in the many billions of dollars," said Putnam.

Each of the companies fingered thus far have denied the charges, and have filed similar counter-claims against e.Digital for potentially harming their reputations.

Patent troll or not — this in-flight entertainment firm apparently has big plans to take on even more companies that incorporate flash into their products. ®