Apple has been ordered to shell out $532.9 million to a patent troll after apparently infringing on intellectual property with iTunes features related to data storage and managing access through payment systems.
The fee was awarded by a Texas court, and was positioned between the $852 million Smartflash was seeking in damages and the $4.5 million Apple had argued for.
Smartflash was looking to receive a percentage of sales for all Apple devices — including the iPhone, iPad and Mac — which are used to access iTunes. It claimed Apple had knowingly infringed on the patent after being shown the technology more than a decade ago.
Apple’s argument? That “Smartflash makes no products, has no employees, creates no jobs, has no U.S. presence, and is exploiting our patent system to seek royalties for technology Apple invented,” according to company spokeswoman Kristin Huguet. “We refused to pay off this company for the ideas our employees spent years innovating and unfortunately we have been left with no choice but to take this fight up through the court system.”
Although sales have fallen in recent times, Apple still achieved revenues of $18 billion for its iTunes software and services last year, representing around 10 percent of the company’s total revenue. Smartflash has previously sued Google and Amazon, and is currently making plans to sue Apple rival Samsung.
Hey, at least it’s an equal opportunities patent troll, it seems!
Source: Bloomberg
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.
6 responses to “Apple ordered to feed patent troll $533 million”
Ah, Texas. Stupidity and cupidity are both desirable traits in the Cult of Texas.
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The east Texas locale of all these patent suits is making a nice little cottage industry out of our broken patent system. Patent trolls set up a small office, claim they are based in town and file suits there, knowing they are almost certainly going to win in that court.
“and is exploiting our patent system to seek royalties”
Is this the kettle calling the pot black?
I don’t see Apple doing anything to try and reforn the patent system. They don’t seem bothered by it unless they lose a trial.