Activision countersues Worlds Inc.

Activision Publishing has countersued Worlds Inc. and Worlds Online Inc. months after the latter claimed the Call of Duty publisher infringed on a patent it holds for online worlds.

Activision's countersuit claims that Worlds has infringed, and continues to infringe, U.S. Patent No. 6,014,145 and U.S. Patent No. 5,883,628, which relate to 3D worlds.

Patent No. 6,014,145 reads, "Navigation with optimum viewpoints in three-dimensional workspace interactive displays having three-dimensional objects with collision barriers," while Patent No. 5,883,628 covers "Climability: property for objects in 3-D virtual environments."

The contested product is Worlds Inc. software called "Worlds Player," which is a 3D content and technology platform.

Worlds Inc. originally filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Activision Blizzard, Blizzard Entertainment, and Activision Publishing on March 30, 2012.

"Technologies created by Worlds have helped the businesses of virtual worlds gaming and the sale of virtual goods to grow into a multi-billion dollar industry," Worlds Inc. CEO Thom Kidrin said at the time. "While we are pleased to see that the gaming industry and its rapidly growing customer base have enthusiastically embraced our patented technologies, we deserve fair compensation for their use."

That lawsuit, filed in Massachusetts, is pending.