IFA 2006: SanDisk Pulls MP3 Players from IFA Show September 4, 2006

Read more Digital Audio , Gadgets , Home Entertainment , Portable Media

A legal kerfuffle has forced SanDisk to pull all of its MP3 players off its stands at the IFA 2006 consumer electronics show in Berlin. This is quite embarrassing and costly for the company which just announced its new Sansa range of players.

Sisvel, an Italian patent management company, issued a complaint about unpaid fees a week ago and the German public prosecutor decided today that the claim has some merit, forcing Sandisk to clear its stands. Despite the show crawling with retailers from all over Europe, SanDisk will not be allowed to show them anything - except for photos. Oh dear.

There is certainly no love lost between these two, which have a history. At the show, in an MP3 interview with Digital Lifestyles, Sisvel’s Robert Dini flamboyantly compared his company’s legal action to cutting off a drug dealer before distribution can start. Ouch! How fast can you say ‘Libel Law-suit’? - Martin Lynch

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