NTP PATENTS - 0 FOR 5: The case against Research In Motion, the Canadian manufacturer of the popular BlackBerry wireless device, brought by a Virginia-based company suffered another blow as the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced Friday that it had rejected the fifth of eight patents the challenger is claiming.

The patent in question was the fifth in a row rejected by the patent office. Only three remain to be reexamined. The patent office had initiated the review of four of the disputed patents in January 2003, while Research In Motion requested a review of others. The patents are owned by NTP, a holding company founded by Thomas Campagna, an inventor who died in June 2004.