Little-known Texas MP3 Technologies is taking on Apple, Samsung, and Sandisk with a patent-infringement lawsuit.

The small firm says the larger tech companies are infringing on U.S. patent 7,065,417, which was awarded in June 2006 to multimedia chip-maker SigmaTel and covers “an MPEG portable sound reproducing system and a method for reproducing sound data compressed using the MPEG method.” SigmaTel said it had sold the patent about a month after acquiring it.

In its lawsuit, Texas MP3 Technologies said it is the “assignee of all rights” of the patent and holds “all rights of recovery.”