The iPhone went on sale nine years ago today, and to mark the momentous occasion a Florida man is suing Apple for a whopping $10 billion and 1.5 percent of all future Apple earnings — because he claims to have come up with the idea for Apple’s breakthrough mobile device all way back in 1992.
Thomas S. Ross’ “electronic reading device” patent describes a “device so designed and aggregated as to have created a novel combination of media and communication tools,” only for the idea (allegedly) to have been “hijacked and exploited by Apple’s iPhones, iPods, iPads and others.”
While Apple is widely regarded as having revolutionized the look and feel of smartphones, Ross’ lawsuit claims Apple of choosing to “adopt a culture of dumpster diving as an R&D strategy” instead of coming up with its own concepts.
His star witness? None other than Steve Jobs, who demonstrated his willingness to steal other people’s hard-earned (or, well, hastily-sketched) innovations by once saying that, “we have always been shameless about stealing great ideas.”
The suit finally argues that the distress Ross has suffered as a result of seeing his iPhone everywhere without the proper credit being bestowed on him adds up to a “great and irreparable injury that cannot fully be compensated or measured in money.”
In the meantime, though, he’s happy to take $10 billion — plus the barely-significant sum of 1.5 percent of all future Apple earnings. It’s only right, isn’t it?
Via: Telegraph
Luke Dormehl is a U.K.-based journalist and author, with a background working in documentary film for Channel 4 and the BBC. He is the author of The Apple Revolution and The Formula: How Algorithms Solve All Our Problems … and Create More, both published by Penguin/Random House. His tech writing has also appeared in Wired, Fast Company, Techmeme and other publications.
5 responses to “Apple sued by man who claims he invented iPhone in 1992”
Seems legit. It only took him 9 years to say that. And that sketch it’s iPhone 100% not :) And hey I invented the iPhone. I only demand 1 million USD tho.
Pffft! $1Million bucks! I’m only asking for a 75 year-old bottle of McCallen Single Barrel and a free iPhone every year. . . . a NEW one, not that 2 year-old one that AT&T keeps trying to pawn off on me. Tim, call me. Lets settle this like men.
What the fuck … No way.
He better sue Palm and Blackberry first, because they had those devices earlier. And by waiting 25 years to sue, he has shown that he really didn’t care about defending his intellectual property, so he will lose.
in-teres-ting!