Blackberry adds Snap to companies it’s suing for patent infringement

TORONTO — Blackberry Ltd. has added Snap Inc. to the list of companies it’s taking to court in California for alleged patent infringement.

The Waterloo, Ont.-based company says in a lawsuit that Snap has infringed on intellectual property, including innovations on real-time activity location for maps, message notification techniques and methods for integrating advertising on mobile devices.

The claims, which have not been proven in court, did not specify what financial compensation the company is seeking.

Blackberry says it has been working to establish a dialogue on potential partnerships with Snap for more than a year, and is still open to one, but says it has an obligation to pursue appropriate legal remedies.

The lawsuit against Snap follows ones filed against Facebook Inc. and its WhatsApp and Instagram subsidiaries in early March alleging infringement on several patents related to messaging applications.

Snap did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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