Are you one of the three-million Americans who were more than a little worried that their precious BlackBerry gadgets would become costly paperweights if judgment were to swing in favor of the company that was suing to shut down their production for alleged patent violation?

Peter Svensson of the Associated Press (via BusinessWeek) reports:

Research In Motion Ltd., the maker of the BlackBerry e-mail device, Friday announced it has settled its long-running patent dispute with a small Virginia-based firm, averting a possible court-ordered shutdown of the BlackBerry system.

RIM has paid NTP $612.5 million in a “full and final settlement of all claims,” the companies said.

There! Doesn’t that make you feel better?