Sony and Immersion make a deal

[A Black Falcon]

Invent something and patent it putting in token effort to actually produce the tech,

While 'patent sitting' or whatever is sometimes a problem, that doesn't apply here. Immersion truly does develop its technology, and has been from the beginning. All Force Feedback controllers (gamepads, joysticks, and wheels) use their technology, and Microsoft liscenced it after Immersion sued them for the Xbox and uses their tech in the X360 too. Immersion has already said some very interesting things about what they're going to do with rumble/force feedback on the PS3... easier tools for developers, more features, etc... they DO work on their technology. The fact that they back it up with lawsuits doesn't mean that they just sue and don't actually do anything else.

Oh yes, and Nintendo doesn't pay Immersion anything. Their rumble is non-infringing; one motor instead of two and some different internal design as well.

I don't know about Sega. Maybe Immersion just didn't pay attention to them... after all, it took them a while before they went after Sony and MS; by the point they brought up those lawsuits, the DC was already dead, I believe. I don't know if Sega would have been sued or not.