San Francisco, Jan 15 (DPA) Camera and film company Eastman Kodak said it had sued Apple and RIM, claiming that the camera technology used in iPhones and Blackberries violated one of its patents.

Eastman Kodak said the way those two smartphones preview images violates a digital-imaging patent owned by the company.

“We’ve had discussions for years with both companies in an attempt to resolve this issue amicably, and we have not been able to reach a satisfactory agreement,” Laura Quatela, Kodak’s chief intellectual-property officer, said in a statement Thursday.

“In light of that, we are taking this action to ensure that we protect the interests of our shareholders and the existing licensees of our technology.”

Kodak recently settled a similar case with Samsung after an International Trade Commission judge issued an initial finding that Samsung had infringed on Kodak’s image-preview patent.