It's been brewing for years, but Wi-LAN of Canada finally sues a big player: Wi-LAN has alleged for years that it holds patents that cover a variety of issues to do with OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing), the modulation scheme used for 802.11a and g, among other standards.
In fact, at the first 802.11 Planet conference, representatives of Intersil and Texas Instruments traded barbs over the inclusion of OFDM in 802.11g with TI suggesting patent issues could muddy the water. Its own abandoned PBCC (Packet Binary Convolution Code) has an entirely different approach.
Wi-LAN is going after Cisco, and ostensibly hopes that if it can either win in court or get Cisco to settle that it has a basis for collecting royalties from the entire industry. Wi-LAN could collect vast amounts of money, but they are probably poised to offer reasonable terms. Most patent holders want to ensure strong royalties by not encouraging an ultimate migration from their covered rights. If they lose in court, it's unlikely to cause a ripple.