Nintendo did not infringe on patents held by Motiva LLC in making the Wii controller, the United States Court of Appeals has ruled. In January, the International Trade Commission said that Motiva was only using its motion control patents to sue, and ruled in favor of the Nintendo. The Court of Appeals decision upheld that ruling.

"Motiva was never close to launching a product incorporating the patented technology--nor did any partners show any interest in doing so, for years before or any time after the launch of the Wii," Circuit Judge Sharon Prost wrote in her ruling (via GameSpot).

"Motiva's only remaining prototype was a product far from completion, and a multitude of development and testing steps remained prior to finalising a product for production. Moreover, the evidence demonstrated that Motiva's litigation was targeted at financial gains, not at encouraging adoption of Motiva's patented technology.

The lawsuit started in 2008, when Motiva cited two patents regarding a peripheral for measuring motion. Nintendo argued that the company had no intention of using the patents itself, and the court apparently agreed.