The streaming movie and TV show service Hulu, which is currently in the middle of a bidding war by several companies, is now on the receiving end of a lawsuit. Reuters reports that Rovi Corp has sued Hulu, accusing it of violating Rovi"s patents for its electronic programing guide technology. Rovi"s technology has been licensed by a number of companies including Apple, Microsoft and Comcast. Blockbuster uses Rovi"s program guide tech for its Blockbuster on Demand service while Best Buy also licenses the tech for its CinemaNow service.
In the lawsuit, which was filed on Friday, Rovi accuses Hulu of infringing on its patents, saying that such actions, "presents significant and ongoing damages to Rovi"s business." Rovi is wanting compensation for any lost revenue from not licensing its technology. Hulu has yet to comment on the lawsuit.
Hulu has been in the news a lot lately due to the fact that the company put up a virtual "For Sale" sign in June. Since then, a number of companies have reportedly been kicking at Hulu"s tires including Google, Yahoo, Apple and others. Microsoft reportedly also thought about acquiring Hulu but has since pulled out of the talks. Hulu"s main rival, Netflix, reportedly has no plans to bid to acquire the company. In the meantime, Hulu itself continues to do well. Recently, the company announced that it had signed up 875,000 subscribers to its monthly premium Hulu Plus service. It also said it is on target to have over 1 million subscribers by the end of 2011.