Visto has sued rival push email provider Good Technology, claiming its competitor infringed four of its patents, which relate to data synchronisation across a network. The lawsuit comes a month and a half after it sued Microsoft for the alleged violation of three of the four patents.

Good is accused of incorporating technologies and techniques set down in US patents 6,085,192, 6,151,606 and 6,708,221 - the three patents Microsoft is also claimed to have violated. Good also faces a fourth infringement claim focusing on US patent number 5,961,590, entitled "System and method for synchronizing electronic mail between a client site and a central site".

The four patents, in numerical order were filed in 1997, 1997, 1998 and 2000, and granted in 1999, 2000, 2000 and 2004.

Visto filed its complaint with the US District Court of Eastern Texas. It is seeking monetary damages and a ban preventing Good from offering allegedly infringing products, including its GoodLink client app.

It is perhaps no coincidence that both companies' key competitor, Research in Motion (RIM) may very well be forced to exit the US market this month, or at least go through a difficult upgrade process to avoid using technology and techniques owned by patent holding company NTP. RIM's rivals smell blood, and in anticipation of Blackberry users flocking to alternative platforms, each is jostling for attention. With lawsuits targeting Microsoft and Good, Visto is clearly pushing harder than most - company chairman, CEO and president Brian A Bogosia's reference to Blackberry's future in the US as "marketplace jitters" so early in the firm's statement on the case, is proof of that. ®