Finnish cell phone giant Nokia Tuesday told a U.S. trade court “virtually all” of Apple products, including the iPhone, iPod and Mac, infringe its patents. The move seeks to halt imports of Apple products.
The seven patents named “allow better user experience, lower manufacturing costs, smaller size and longer battery life for Nokia products.” Nokia said its complaint filed before the U.S. International Trade Commission “is about protecting the results of such pioneering development.”
The Espoo, Finland-based Nokia also filed a lawsuit in a Delaware federal court, claiming Apple violated the same seven patents and asking for a jury trial, a sales injunction and unnamed damages.
In October, Nokia sued Apple in a Delaware court, charging Apple was “attempting to get a free ride on the back of Nokia’s innovation.” That lawsuit centered on 10 wireless patents covering 3G, GSM, WCDMA and WLAN technology.
Although Apple did not respond to Nokia’s latest legal tactic, the Cupertino, Calif. company recently countersued the cell phone maker, claiming Nokia violated 13 of its patents. In its response, Apple lawyers charged “Nokia has sought to gain an unjust competitive advantage over Apple by charging unwarranted fees to use patents that allegedly cover industry compatibility standards and by seeking to obtain access to Apple’s intellectual property.” Some experts suggest Nokia is seeking royalties between $6 and $12 for each iPhone sold. Apple reportedly has sold 33.7 million iPhones since 2007.
Involving the U.S. trade court may indicate a desire by Nokia for a quicker resolution. While the issue could remain before the Delaware court for an unknown time period, an ITC investigation usually takes 15 months.
Nokia, once the dominant cell phone maker, has seen Apple’s iPhone threaten its lead. In November, Apple’s presence in Europe grew by 523 percent during the third quarter while Nokia’s share fell to 38 percent from 51 percent, analysts said.
In another measure of slippage by Nokia, Apple overtook the Finnish company as the most profitable cell phone maker.
[Via Bloomberg and AppleInsider]
