Apple reportedly warned a U.K. court that it might withdraw from the country if it must pay an enormous patent licensing fee. The iPhone-maker is being sued by Optis Cellular Technology over patents Apple says are invalid because they cover standard cellular-wireless technology.
Court rules Apple doesn’t owe patent troll $503 million
Apple won a round in court against VirnetX, a company often accused of being patent troll. An appeals court threw out $503 million award that the iPhone maker was ordered to pay in an earlier ruling.
However, the court didn’t reverse the original patent-infringement decision, just the amount of the award.
Apple asks Supreme Court to reject Samsung’s ‘unexceptional’ appeal
In a petition to the Supreme Court, Apple says the high court shouldn’t waste its time with Samsung’s high-profile appeal in the two companies’ long legal battle over patents.
Samsung filed an appeal in December asking for the Supreme Court to take a look at how the damages were calculated, but Apple argues that even though it was awarded $548 million, the case is “legally unexceptional.”
Apple’s pile of money is patent trolls’ favorite target
A whopping 9 out of 10 patent lawsuits filed against tech companies in the first half of 2015 were brought by NPEs (non-practicing enterprises, a.k.a patent trolls), a new report reveals.
Thanks to its status as the world’s most valuable company, Apple was the number one target of these attempted lawsuits — with the Eastern District of Texas being the favored location for patent trials on account of their tendency to side with trolls and award large sums of damages.
Patent Troll Blackberry Says Ryan Seacrest’s Typo Keyboard Is “Deliberate Copy”
Blackberry — which recently celebrated the notable achievement of a zero percent marketshare in the smartphone space — has turned into a patent troll now. In suing Ryan Seacrest’s Typo iPhone Keyboard case (which gives the iPhone a physical QWERTY style keyboard which can be slide onto the screen when necessary) now claims that it is a “deliberate” copy of Blackberry that violates three patents.
Patent Trolls Like The Taste Of Apple More Than Anything Else
Patent trolls are everywhere these days, swaming over the hills of Silicon Valleys on the back of their patent wargs. Everyone is dealing with the frivolous lawsuits patent trolls make a living bringing against any technology company that experiences even a modicum of success, but hey, go figure: ultimately, patent trolls are more interested in suing Apple than anyone else.
Apple Tops List Of Companies Targeted Most By Patent Trolls
Apple is no stranger to lawsuits and with all the cash its been making the past few years, the lawsuits from patent trolls have been piling up. According to a new study on lawsuits from non practicing entities (patent trolls), Apple got slammed with more patent lawsuits (171 total) in the last five years than any other company.
President Obama Goes To War Against Patent Trolls
The term “patent troll” tends to be thrown around a lot when talking about Apple, Samsung, et al.’s endless patent litigation, but there’s a big difference between companies trying to protect their patent profiles in court and the sort of trolls who exist for no other reason than to sue other companies for violations on overly broad patents that they aren’t using, stifling innovation (for example, notorious in-app patent troll Lodsys).
Reforms to the patent system to neuter patent trolls is something that have been called for for years, but it seems like President Obama is finally doing something. The White House has just announced that they are taking on the patent troll problem with seven new legislative proposal. But even if Congress won’t budge? Obama says he’s going to take five executive actions to thwart patent trolls, which he can do even without congressional approval.
Apple’s Secret Weapon In The Patent Wars Is A Nuclear NORAD
The Rockstar Consortium made headlines when the group won a bidding war for the patent portfolio of one-time communications giant Nortel. Aside from getting a green light for the purchase from the Department of Justice, Rockstar hasn’t really made headlines since it won the patents.
Rockstar may be keeping a low profile right now, but the company is well armed and will play a massive role in the mobile technology patent battles echoing around the world. In fact, the company may very well have been a secret weapon in Steve Jobs’ plan to “go thermonuclear” in Apple’s battle against Android.
Apple Readies For War Against Patent Troll Lodsys, May Be Paying Sued Indie Devs Legal Fees
You can’t say Lodsys weren’t warned that Apple was prepared to fight: less than two weeks after the notorious patent troll sued indie iOS developers for using Apple’s own in-app purchasing mechanism in their apps, Cupertino has asked a judge to be allowed into the ring to kick Lodsys’ ass.
Indie iOS Devs Gain Unlikely Allies In Fight Against Patent Troll Lodsys
Patent troll Lodsys’ attacks upon indie iOS developers for using Apple’s in-app purchasing mechanism is a hot topic at WWDC 2011, so this news couldn’t be better timed: a Michigan law firm representing some unlikely companies with deep pockets has just attacked the validity of Lodsys’ patents.
Here’s The Full Text Of Apple’s Response To Patent Troll Lodsys
Interested in seeing the full letter Apple is sending indie iOS devs threatened by patent troll Lodsys over the use of Apple’s in-app purchasing mechanism? We’ve got it, and whether you’re versed in legalese or not, you’ll want to read this: Apple means business.
Apple Responds To Lodsys: Cease And Desist Your Patent Troll Threats, Or Prepare To Fight
Apple has finally responded to Lodsys’ patent troll attempts to extort indie iOS devs for using iOS’s In-App Purchasing Mechanism: developers don’t owe Lodsys anything for offering in-app purchases, and if Lodsys cares to press the issue, Apple will be more than happy to step in on behalf of their devs… and wipe the floor with Lodsys.
Apple Lifts Club, Prepares To Smack Down Patent Troll Lodsys
Patent troll Lodsys has been suing iOS indie developers for using Apple’s own in-app purchasing mechanism. Sleazily, the company has claimed that they had no choice but to go after the little guy because Apple refused to cough up an App-Store-wide patent license.
No surprises here: Lodsys’s actions have roused the Cupertino Colossus, and they might not like the response they get from disturbing the sleeping giant’s slumber.
Patent Troll Lodsys: We Had No Choice But Sue Indie iOS Devs
Patent troll Lodsys — the company who threatened to sue multiple iOS indie devs on Friday for using Apple’s own in-app purchasing mechanism — has responded to the widespread furor over their actions in a series of Q&A posts. And guess what? It turns out we were all wrong about them being dicks. In fact, they’re the real victims here! Boo hoo!
pCalc Dev Defiantly Releases Update In Face Of Lodsys Patent Troll Threats
After indie dev James Thomson was threatened with a lawsuit earlier today by a patent troll called Lodsys for using Apple’s in-app purchase mechanism in his pCalc iOS app, his first instinct was to play things cautious and not release the update scheduled for today.
Several hours later, though, and Thomson is feeling bolder: he’s decided to release the update to pCalc anyway. But will the other devs hit with shakedowns today be so plucky and defiant?
Another Company Suing Indie iOS Devs, This Time For Upgrade Links [Updates]
Wondering who the mysterious patent troll suing indie devs for using Apple’s own in-app purchasing system is? We still don’t know, but we can add another company to the list of patent houses suing iOS devs… this time not for in-app purchases, but for upgrade links.
Indie iOS Devs Under Legal Fire For Offering In-App Purchases [Update]
The lead developer behind the popular Mac dock replacement DragThing and the fantastic iOS scientific calculator app pCalc is about to be sued for patent infringement because his software uses Apple’s own in-app purchasing mechanism. And he’s not alone.
Not only will the lawsuit delay the latest update to the free version of pCalc, pCalc Lite, it may just be the opening shot in an IP war, not just against Apple, but against the devs who dare to sell their software on the App Store.