Iconic photography firm Eastman Kodak could be the next company set to cash-in on the patents land grab currently underway in the mobile industry. According to bank estimates, the digital-imaging patents owned by Kodak may now be worth US$3 billion in a sale, reports Bloomberg, some five times more than the company itself.

According to the report, Microsoft and Samsung are the most likely suitors for the Kodak patents, which are used in 85 percent of digital cameras and smartphones. Kodak is already suing both Apple and RIM over alleged infringements of its image-preview technology, attempting to extract US$1 billion in licensing fees.

The US$3 billion valuation of the Kodak patents reflects the high premiums paid for Nortel’s patents portfolio recently, won by an Apple-led consortium for US$4.5 billion, and Google’s US$12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility this week, which saw it inherit thousands of valuable mobile patents.

Christopher Veronda, a spokesman for Kodak, referred to its 20 July announcement, which said the company was exploring options for its digital-imaging patents, “a move reflecting the current heightened market demand for intellectual property.”

“Kodak is the lowest hanging fruit out there,” said Chris Marlett, CEO of MDB Capital, a California-based investment bank specialising in intellectual property. Kodak’s patents “could go for a huge number and nobody’s talking about it,” he added.

Another analyst, Mark Kaufman of Rafferty Capital Markets, said: “You cannot go to market today with a mobile device that doesn’t have the ability to capture an image and transport it. If you were to be an acquirer of this, think about what your leverage may be against those other manufacturers out there using Android.”

Kodak once had a market value of more than US$30 billion, but has seen its value plunge 98 percent since its peak in the 1990s as demand for film photography collapsed following the rise of digital camera technology. It had a market cap of US$576 million as of yesterday, notes Bloomberg.