Federal Judge James R. Spencer did not rule yet on whether to shut down Research in Motion (RIM), but faulted both the BlackBerry maker and patent holding company NTP for not settling their lengthy patent dispute. RIM was also admonished for offering an inconsistent argument against a court-ordered shutdown of BlackBerry service in the U.S. An unbelievably important decision has been left to the court and has clouded RIM's business, said Judge Spencer, who is expected to rule in the near future on what financial penalties RIM should pay NTP for infringing on patents. RIM lost in court in 2002 in a Virginia jury case. RIM says it has workaround technology that can be deployed by BlackBerry users if there is an injunction of use of the BlackBerry in the U.S., where three million BlackBerrys are in circulation. Some observers said the judges tone was not encouraging for a positive outcome for RIM, but, on the NASDAQ, RIM's shares rose 6.5%. A patent attorney says Judge Spencer's tone hints of the issuance of an injunction, and the only things in doubt are the scope and amount of damages owed to NTP. Others however, believe that the judge wants a settlement instead of litigation. NTP has asked the judge for $126 million in legal damages plus royalties, and RIM asked for a new trial and a revisiting of the royalty rate and damages, considering that some of the claims were thrown out by a federal appeals court.