While I've had issues with the patent system itself in the past, working as an engineer with a manufacturing company, the system is there to protect an idea someone has based on what they want to build. To be quite frank about it, you don't even really need a working item. The patent system was created to protect inventors from having IDEA's stolen and put into manufacturing by large companies before they themselves could come up with capital to do it. The fact that 10 years later they still had not done so and someone else had gone ahead and done it does not make their patent invalid.
You also don't just start a lawsuit like this without first contacting the companies in question. They probably tried to settle out of court or license before they went ahead with the suit. Keep in mind they have the $600 million they got from RIM which they can use to fight this battle AND all they really need to do is get an injunction to stop the technology from being used, which is a lot easier than winning, until the case is settled... what would that do to the big guys?