Via Fights Back, Sues Intel

A few days ago, Intel announced that it would unleash its lawyers on upstart chipset manufacturer VIA for infringing patents in putting forth its P4X266 P4 chipset. We told you about it yesterday with some links to the Inq, where Mike seems to have a pretty good handle on what's going on. Well, yesterday, we found out from the very same source that VIA, who seem to have been itching for a fight over the issue for some time, aren't taking Intel's lawsuit lying down. VIA has launched its own suit alleging that Intel is infringing on its (VIA's) intellectual property - not just with the i845 chipset but with the P4 processor itself. As an added giggle, it looks like VIA is also attempting to bring criminal charges against Intel for destruction of VIA property when Intel employees tore down flags and balloons advertising the P4X266 chipset at Computex in Taipei a few months ago. Once again, Mike at the Inquirer has the story , along with a quote from VIA's Director of Marketing. When things get silly, the silliest get sillier and, when the economy gets a little shaky, it seems like the only ones making any real money are the lawyers.