Vancouver firm suing SnapChat for patent infringement
by The Canadian Press
Tech investment fund Investel says SnapChat's geofilter technology infringes on its Canadian patent for technology that taps into relationships between users and advertisers
VANCOUVER—The SnapChat social media platform is being sued in Canada by a Vancouver-based company that accuses the picture and video service of patent infringement.
Investel Capital Corp. is taking aim at the app’s ability to pinpoint the geographic location of its social media users.
SnapChat’s platform allows users to send and receive photos, videos and other images over the Internet using a smartphone or other device. It uses geofilters to help connect users to a particular place, including a business or private event.
Investel is asking the Federal Court of Canada to award it monetary compensation and an order that prohibits California-based SnapChat from infringing on its patent in the future.
It claims the geofilter technology infringes on a Canadian patent owned by Investel, which says it has developed a global marketing system that taps into relationships between users and advertisers.
SnapChat Inc. hasn’t commented publicly on the suit.
