Good post - I too am anxious to get this ordeal behind us. A couple thoughts...

1. If EDIG should get a favorable ruling that perhaps includes some dollars to cover attorney fees (not certain if that’s a reasonable possibility or not), then I could envision a post-trial settlement that would give back to digEcor some portion of the judge’s award in exchange for an agreement not to appeal. It would depend on the circumstances of course, but I’m just suggesting another possible way that the case could be truly over once a decision has been reached. If EDIG is mostly successful at trial, I’ve got to think that a possible appeal has already been considered and will somehow be managed without too much further difficulty. My opinion of course so we’ll see.

2. It occurred to me that the initial IP settlements happened around 6-8 months from the March 2008 filing... and that this will soon be about the same time period until the February 2010 Markman hearing. If DM were to file against the next group of infringers within the next month or two, then at about the same point in time where companies were ready to settle in the past, these new companies would have to make a crucial decision - that is, to settle before or after Markman... with all of the ‘price’ implications that such a decision would hold. Could one part of DM/EDIG’s strategy be to give companies just the right amount of time to understand our claims while placing (at least some of) them under pressure to settle just prior to Markman? If so, that could set us up for a profitable 4th fiscal quarter even if Markman turned out to be less than optimal. Again just something to think about, but my guess is that we will see more filings from DM this quarter.

- Sinkman