reports that LG Electronics Inc. filed complains with the International Trade Commission seeking to block the sales of PlayStation 3s (and Sony Bravia TVs) in the U.S. in response to patent infringement claims made by Sony. LG also filed civil suits against Sony here in California.

Bit of background -- LG is a Korean company known for being the world's third-largest cell phone maker. Japan-based Sony, meanwhile, has a broader consumer electronics portfolio that includes laptops, TVs, the PS3, and that weird . Both companies get about 20 percent of their revenues from North America, hence LG wanting to block sales here and not, say, in China.

The part that we care about is the Blu-ray suit (which is where the PS3 comes in). The infringement claims hinge on the way the players deal with multiple data streams and on a system that allows the player to copy data stored on read-only devices.

What makes it news, though, is the size of the companies. Anybody can get into a legal battle that amounts to nothing in the grand scheme of things -- but whenever somebody we recognize gets into it (e.g. EA, Activision, Nintendo), it tends to make people pay attention. And take sides.

STAT CHECK -- 5PM PST, Feb. 8, 2011