I have no inside knowledge of the NTP vs. RIM case, but that won't stop me from making a bold prediction about its outcome: RIM will settle the case with NTP for a large but non-fatal payment and possibly a small slice of future earnings. Both companies simply have too much to lose from an unfavorable court decision and the U.S. patent office keeps invalidating NTP's patents. On the other hand, the BlackBerry itself will become less relevant in the coming months as competitors like Good offer similar push email functionality at a cheaper price. Expect nearly every new phone to come with a push email component by the end of 2006.