I'm guessing that today's noticeable (but not sharp) decline in the stock price of BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion was attributable at least in part to the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office giving NTP an extra 30 days to file their defense about the five patents that form NTP's case for patent infringement.

With that delay, RIM investors might be feeling that U.S. Appeals Court Judge James Spencer may be even less willing to wait for a final USPTO ruling before he announces some sort of suspension of BlackBerry sales and services in the U.S. as early as February 1.

In other words, the timing for a USPTO ruling favorable to RIM meshes a bit less desirably with at least a temporary suspension not happening.

And so, trading for the year ends on an uncertain note. An uncertainty reflected in today' s prices:

Here's where things stand at the close of today's trading:

Nasdaq (RIMM)-  $66.01 a share, down $1.09 ( -1.62%) from Thursday's $67.10 a share close.
 
Toronto Stock Exchange (RIM)- $76.75 a share (CDN), down $1.76 ( -2.24%) from Thursday's $78.51 (CDN) a share close.