The suit alleges that FB has infringed on some of BlackBerry’s patents including security features and mobile notifications. 

“We have a lot of respect for Facebook and the value they’ve placed on messaging capabilities, some of which were invented by BlackBerry,” the once-powerful phone pioneer was quoted as saying. 

“However, we have a strong claim that Facebook has infringed on our intellectual property, and after several years of dialogue, we also have an obligation to our shareholders to pursue appropriate legal remedies,” it added.  

FB has made it clear that it intends to fight the allegations. “Blackberry’s suit sadly reflects the current state of its messaging business. Having abandoned its efforts to innovate, Blackberry is now looking to tax the innovation of others. We intend to fight,” Paul Grewal, Deputy General Counsel for Facebook was quoted as saying. 

BlackBerry is no stranger to litigation, having settled its own allegations of infringing on other tech patents with the likes of Nokia and NTP, CNET reported on Tuesday. Last year, it turned around and accused Nokia of patent infringement, the report said.