12/03, 6:35pm
UK ban proceedings may have leaked M8 launch
A judge in the United Kingdom appears to have confirmed a February launch windows for HTC's follow-up to this year's HTC One flagship. In the same proceedings that marked a ban on the HTC One Mini in the UK, BGR reports that Judge Richard Arnold pointed to a possible February 2014 launch for HTC's next flagship device. This is in keeping with previous rumors on the device's availability, but it is the most specific of any leaks, and appears based on internal information.
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12/02, 3:58pm
Decision effectively upholds existing law
The US Supreme Court has declined to hear a legal challenge against New York's sales-tax law for online purchases, according to a Reuters report. Retailers Amazon and Overstock had asked the court to determine if the tax regulations violate the Constitution, however the decision effectively upholds the New York Court of Appeals' March ruling that sided with the state.
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11/29, 12:47pm
Compliance monitor returns fire in letter to board
Apple has filed a formal objection against the compliance monitor in the recent e-book price-fixing lawsuit, crying foul over the attorney's alleged $69,000 weekly fees. The company's legal team also claims the monitor, Michael Bromwich, has exceeded his authority by demanding interviews with board members and executives, such as design head Jony Ive and board member Al Gore, who are not involved in the business unit affected by the court decision.
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11/22, 11:01am
Sum below Apple's original demand
Two of the jurors in the Apple v. Samsung damages retrial are crediting an accountant witness, Julie Davis, for the $290 million verdict in Apple's favor. Jury forewoman Colleen Allen tells Bloomberg that Davis was a "superstar" who stayed steady even when she was being cross-examined. Allen's opinion is backed by juror Barry Goldman-Hall, who says it was Davis' testimony that helped the jury come to a precise figure. There were eight people on the jury in all, consisting of two men and six women.
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11/19, 3:44pm
Damages award now in the hands of the jury, time to decision unknown
Apple and Samsung are wrapping up the retrial of the vacated damages from the first omnibus smartphone patent trial from 2012. In closing arguments, Apple is arguing that Samsung cannot refute that it had improperly used iPhone related patents, and did so willingly, in its design process of more than a dozen devices. Samsung doesn't deny infringement, but believes that Apple is overstating how important the patents at stake actually are, and is asking far too much money to compensate for the unlicensed use.
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11/19, 12:45pm
Company claims documents, absence of Samsung execs aid case
Apple today made its closing arguments in the Apple v. Samsung damages retrial. A lawyer for the company, Bill Lee, argued earlier on Tuesday that documents were Apple's best evidence. Presenting to the court, Lee once again referred to images of Samsung devices pre- and post-iPhone, as well as internal Samsung communications. "In some ways our best witness is Samsung," he claimed.
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11/18, 12:42pm
Potential ban likely to have minimal effect on Samsung
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has granted Apple another chance to impose a sales ban on patent-infringing Samsung phones, reports say. The court has vacated an earlier ruling by District Court judge Lucy Koh, who denied a ban Apple was seeking on 26 Samsung products. The Court of Appeals states that with respect to Apple's technical utility patents, Apple must now only show "some connection" between a patented feature and demand for a Samsung device, rather than illustrate a feature as a primary attraction, as Koh requested.
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11/15, 3:12pm
'Weakens the view that the world has for Apple'
Samsung infringement of Apple patents made it harder to sell the iPhone and iPad, Apple's head of worldwide marketing, Phil Schiller, claimed earlier today in a second day of testimony at the Apple v. Samsung damages retrial. Asked by an Apple attorney what he thought when he first saw the Samsung Galaxy S, Schiller said: "I was quite shocked. They went and copied the iPhone." He went on to suggest that Samsung's past copying "weakens the view that the world has for Apple," and has caused people to "question our innovation and design skills in a way that people never used to."
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11/13, 5:07pm
Samsung says damages owed are far shorter
Apple has asked for $380 million in damages at the beginning of the Apple v. Samsung damages retrial, reports say. Harold McElhinny, an attorney representing Apple, explained in opening statements today that the company's calculations assume lost profits of $114 million, Samsung profits of $231 million, and royalties of $35 million. Apple claims it would have sold 360,000 devices if Samsung hadn't released ones infringing on its patents, and that Samsung sold 10.7 million infringing devices, pulling in $3.5 billion in revenue. To support his case, McElhinny suggested that an internal Samsung document was "conclusive evidence Apple lost sales because of Samsung."
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11/12, 5:04pm
California jury to assess fate of $450M in damages
The jury selection process has begun for the retrial covering portions of the damages from last year's $1.05 billion verdict in the Apple-Samsung patent infringement case. Judge Lucy Koh, who initially vacated $450 million of the damages from Apple's landmark victory, is presiding over the proceedings once more. In the new case, the jury will decide a new dollar figure to cover the damages of Samsung's infringement for those products which fall under the purview of Koh's vacated $450 million.
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11/12, 12:40pm
Apple still considers NetAirus parent invalid
Jury selection is slated to begin today in the long-running NetAirus v. Apple lawsuit, Bloomberg reports. The case, first filed over three years ago, complains that the iPhone violates a 1997 patent held by NetAirus owner Richard Ditzik, documenting a handheld device merging a computer with wireless communications over local- and wide-area networks. Apple has maintained that the Newton MessagePad achieved similar technology as early as 1994, rendering NetAirus' patent obsolete.
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10/22, 11:30pm
Partial license terms of Apple and Nokia deal known to many Samsung execs
Samsung and its attorneys in its smartphone patent battle with Apple were grilled today by Federal Court Judge Lucy Koh over alleged mishandling of confidential Apple and Nokia documents. Apple calls the misuse of the documents released by law firm Quinn Emanuel a "massive unauthorized disclosure of highly confidential information" that gives Samsung an edge in negotiations with some of Apple’s business partners, including Nokia itself.
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10/18, 4:46pm
Case pursued through small claims court
A California man, Mark Menacher, has filed a small-claims lawsuit against Apple CEO Tim Cook over an automatic update to iOS 7. The case is being handled through the San Diego County branch of California's Superior Court, and asks for a method to remove update files plus $50 in compensation. Automatic over-the-air downloads of iOS updates became an option with iOS 6; although people must give permission for an update to install, the associated file can't be removed if a person chooses to back out, consuming 1GB or more of free space.
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10/10, 12:10pm
Judge refuses to interrupt service
Aereo has won a partial victory in a Boston federal court, avoiding an injunction that would have interrupted its streaming broadcast-TV service. The company also announced that its Android app will be available on October 22, following development delays that pushed it past the original September launch window.
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10/08, 12:46pm
Amazon to build private cloud
Amazon has reportedly won a legal battle with IBM over a $600 million contract with the Central Intelligence Agency. The companies have been competing for a ten-year agreement to help the agency build and manage a large-scale private cloud network for data-mining operations.
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10/08, 12:26pm
Small range of phones affected
Samsung did not receive a hoped-for Obama administration veto of an ITC import ban, according to an official statement by US Trade Representative Michael Froman. "After carefully weighing policy considerations, including the impact on consumers and competition, advice from agencies, and information from interested parties, I have decided to allow [the ban to take effect]," says Froman. Just a small number of older, generally outdated phones will be affected, since more recent devices have worked around the two Apple patents that form the basis for the ban. The patents involve aspects of multi-touch technology and a sensor for headphone jacks.
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10/03, 10:36am
Samsung allegedly used terms to gain upper hand in negotiations
Samsung executives obtained illicit access to the terms of licensing agreements between Apple and Nokia, and at least Apple is requesting sanctions, according to an Apple v. Samsung court order from Magistrate Judge Paul Grewal. The licensing terms were contained in a non-redacted document marked for use by outside legal counsel with the phrase "Highly Confidential -- Attorneys' Eyes Only." Nokia's Chief Intellectual Property Officer, Paul Melin, charges however that on June 4th, Samsung executives ended up using the document in a negotiation session with his company.
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09/30, 9:30am
Ruling applies to cases already settled
An east Texas judge, Rodney Gilstrap, has issued a ruling blocking Apple from intervening on behalf of iOS app developers pursued by Lodsys, reports say. The order, handed down last Tuesday, also allows Lodsys to settle individually with each of the developers it has been leveling patent claims against. Apple has been seeking to intervene on behalf of developers for two years, arguing that it since it licensed patents (now owned by Lodsys) from Intellectual Ventures for in-app purchases, third-party developers are already protected.
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09/27, 2:58pm
Commission seeks public comments
The US Federal Trade Commission has announced that it is opening an investigation into patent assertion entities (PAEs), commonly referred to using the derisive term "patent trolls." The commission cautions that its initial move is limited to information gathering, focusing on approximately 25 companies whose primary business model involves purchasing patents and filing infringement lawsuits.
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09/26, 9:52am
Amount substantially less that originally demanded
The Tokyo District Court has ordered Apple to pay $3 million in damages to a Japanese inventor, Norihiko Saito. Saito first filed a lawsuit against Apple five years ago, alleging that the clickwheel found on the Classic and some older iPods violates a patent of his. He originally called for 10 billion yen in damages, or about $101 million, based on the strength of iPod sales at the time.
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09/25, 4:30pm
Name shared with IGB Electronica
Apple has won an appeal allowing it to continue using the "iPhone" trademark in Brazil. A local company, IGB Electronica, earlier argued in court that it had exclusive Brazilian rights to the name, since it first filed for a trademark in 2000, seven years before the Apple iPhone would be announced. That trademark was granted in 2008 though, and IGB only released its Android-based Gradiente iphone in December 2012, a month before the trademark was due to expire. Nevertheless, Brazil's Institute of Industry Property recently ruled in favor of IGB, prompting the Apple appeal.
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09/09, 1:15pm
First proposal deemed insufficient
European Union regulators have reportedly found Samsung's settlement offer to be insufficient, forcing the company to expand its proposal to avoid a fine for its patent lawsuits against Apple. Samsung last year dropped its injunction request, which was deemed improper, however the European Commission continued to pursue antitrust actions that could result in a fine of more than $18 billion.
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09/03, 2:59pm
Feature should return in near future
The Karlsruhe Higher Regional Court has stayed enforcement of an injunction blocking push email for German iCloud users, reports say. The injunction stems from a lawsuit filed by Motorola, and was originally issued by the Mannheim Regional Court in February 2012. With the Karlsruhe ruling, push email should return as soon as Apple can post a bond, meant to ensure that Motorola can collect damages should it win the related lawsuit.
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08/30, 12:45pm
Publishers expected to pay out over $162 million
Two of the five publishers accused of conspiring with Apple to inflate e-book prices, Macmillan and Penguin, have started issuing emails to e-book customers, informing them of rights, responsibilities, and proposed terms in the legal settlement the companies negotiated. Under current terms, the publishers would distribute approximately $162.25 million to customers who bought e-books at any digital outlet between the iBookstore's launch on April 1st, 2010 and May 21st, 2012.
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08/23, 4:37pm
Denies motion brought by First Amendment Coalition
The Federal US Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed a lower court ruling that would've forced Apple and Samsung to disclose legal documents containing sales and profit data, Reuters reports. "We recognize the importance of protecting the public's interest in judicial proceedings and of facilitating its understanding of those proceedings," a three-judge panel states. "That interest, however, does not extend to mere curiosity about the parties' confidential information where that information is not central to a decision on the merits."
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08/23, 3:32pm
Uses evidence from talks between Jobs, Schiller, Cue
The US Department of Justice has filed a revised settlement proposal for the outcome of its recent trial victory against Apple. The proposal is similar to the original, but incorporates an expanded section on in-app purchases, claiming that Apple formulated its rules to "retaliate against Amazon for competitive conduct that Apple disapproved of" and "make it more difficult for consumers using Apple devices to compare ebook prices among different retailers."
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08/23, 9:34am
Will leave many ruled damages intact
US District Court judge Lucy Koh has issued a ruling denying Samsung a new trial related to Apple's "rubber-banding" interface patent. Apple once accused over 20 phones and two tablets of violating the patent. During the companies' 2012 US trial, the jury ruled that 18 of the devices were in violation, but last March Koh reduced the initial $1.05 billion trial verdict by $450.5 million, on the basis that the jury had miscalculated. A partial retrial has been ordered for November, but now the rubber-banding patent won't be involved.
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08/22, 5:37pm
Decision follows joint amicus curiae brief
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has declined to allow Verizon, Ford and the American Association of Advertising Agencies from participating in an upcoming hearing on the Apple v. Motorola patent dispute. As noted by patent analyst Florian Mueller, the third parties previously submitted a joint amicus curiae brief that backed Judge Posner's June 2012 dismissal of infringement claims from both companies.
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08/09, 4:04pm
If victorious, Apple will leverage ruling into sales block of more products
Earlier today, a three-judge panel heard an appeal from Apple on a permanent injunction of sales on selected Samsung phones, previously denied by Judge Lucy Koh in the first groundbreaking smartphone patent trial between the manufacturing giants. At stake is not only an embargo on the mostly obsolete phones listed in the original complaint, but Apple's ability to seek bans rapidly for newer phones that Apple also deems infringing.
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08/09, 11:57am
Sign of companies operating too closely in unison, DoJ suggests
The US Department of Justice has filed a response to the book publishing industry's defense of Apple in light of possible settlement terms that could impose strict restrictions on Apple, and which the publishers suggest might alter the terms of their own settlements over allegations of fixing e-book prices. DoJ attorney Lawrence Buterman contends that the unified defense shows that the publishers have "banded together once again," as they did when conspiring to inflate prices and undermine Amazon. The publishers' motion "only highlights why it is necessary to ensure that Apple (and hopefully other retailers) can discount ebooks and compete on retail price for as long as possible," the filing reads.
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08/08, 1:07pm
Skips usual demand for patent licenses
Patent holding firm Lodsys has agreed to mutual charitable donations as settlement in its case against TMSOFT, a developer of various Mac and iOS apps. The person behind TMSOFT, Todd Moore, described the case as a "frivolous lawsuit" and notes that the case has been dismissed "with prejudice," preventing Lodsys from suing him again. He adds that he wasn't forced to sign a confidentiality agreement, but that he also isn't allowed to sue Lodsys, which could've been used to have courts rule the company's patents invalid.
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07/30, 10:26am
Case down to eight patents for future trial
Apple and Google-owned Motorola have agreed to drop a combined 14 patents from their Florida lawsuit, narrowing the involved patents to just four for each side. Motorola tossed eight, while Apple did away with six. The motion must still be approved by the District Court for the Southern District of Florida, but is in keeping with pressure from judge Robert Scola to scale back the case.
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07/15, 5:16pm
Lack of Samsung product embargo following billion-dollar award at stake
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has scheduled Apple's appeal of a post-trial injunction decision by Judge Lucy Koh following the landmark Apple versus Samsung smartphone trial in 2012. Apple's appeal is objecting to the denial of Samsung product injunctions against 13 Samsung products that were found to be violating eight patents during the original trial. The appeal has been scheduled for August 9, just days after an US International Trade Commission embargo against Apple products in a different matter is scheduled to go into effect unless vetoed by the Obama administration or stayed pending that appeal.
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07/10, 12:46pm
Planned grounds for appeal yet to be disclosed
Apple will appeal today's judgment against it in a trial over e-book price fixing, says spokesman Tom Neumayr. "Apple did not conspire to fix e-book pricing and we will continue to fight against these false accusations," he adds. "We've done nothing wrong."
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07/09, 3:09pm
Decision to abandon case credited to Apple
Apple and Amazon have come to a settlement in their lawsuit over the term "app store," Reuters reports. US District Judge Phyllis Hamilton has ordered the case dismissed at the companies' request, following Apple's issuing a covenant not to sue, which in turn did away with Amazon's need to pursue a counterclaim. A lawyer for Amazon, Martin Glick, explains that "this was a decision by Apple to unilaterally abandon the case, and leave Amazon free to use 'appstore.'"
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07/09, 1:41pm
Move could delay damages retrial
Late on Monday, Samsung filed a motion requesting a new trial over its alleged violation of an Apple "rubber-banding" patent, says FOSS Patents. The patent covers the animation seen whenever someone reaches the top or bottom of a scrolling page in iOS. Samsung has long dropped the feature from its implementations of Android, but has nevertheless been ruled to be infringing the patent in the US and Japan.
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07/03, 11:26am
iPad, iPhone 5, MacBook Air listed as infringing hardware
Boston University is suing Apple over infringement of a patent for thin, insulating monocrystalline gallium nitride films. The Boston Herald reports that the case was filed Tuesday through the US District Court of Massachusetts, and that the patent in question dates back to 1997, credited to computer engineering professor Theodor Moustakas. The university lists the iPad, iPhone 5, and MacBook Air as infringing products.
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07/02, 9:16pm
Latest salvo of legal filings from geolocation firm accused Brin of misconduct
Documents in Skyhook's third legal action against Google have surfaced, accusing Google co-founder Sergey Brin of disparaging the company in discussions with Apple in the early days of geolocation on Apple's iPhone. Skyhook believes that Brin "had discussions with Apple representatives about Apple's announcement regarding Skyhook's location technology and Google's displeasure with it."
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07/02, 7:16pm
Samsung wishes November retrial to be pushed back further
In the shadow of the buildup for the 2014 Apple versus Samsung patent trial, the 2012 trial echoes are still being heard. Samsung is attempting to get the case schedule for the limited damages retrial vacated, claiming that Apple is breaking the court's rules by claiming "vastly greater damages" than it was awarded in end of the first landmark trial. Samsung believes that Apple's new damages expert, hired after the death of Terry Musika, is using faulty assumptions to stack the deck in Apple's favor.
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07/01, 12:33pm
Older devices tossed in bid to narrow case
Apple and Samsung have dropped several devices from their second US lawsuit, scheduled to go to trial on March 31st next year. In April the two parties were ordered to narrow the case to five patents, 15 claims, and 10 products per side. By May, though, the parties were still listing 22 products each.
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06/27, 4:46pm
Single payment of $7 million by Microsoft brings it up to date with licensing
Following a phone conference between Motorola Mobility and Microsoft, a brief note was entered in the court's file -- Microsoft is entitled to be repaid the $100 million bond it posted. This marks the third time that a Microsoft-posted bond has been reduced or released in its ongoing patent battles with Google and subsidiary Motorola Mobile.
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06/27, 9:44am
Apple v. Samsung draining time away from other parties
Apple has lost a motion to include the recently-launched Galaxy S4 among a list of infringing products in its second of two US lawsuits against Samsung. Adding another product would be a "tax on the court’s resources," said Magistrate Judge Paul Grewal in a ruling earlier this week. "Each time these parties appear in the courtroom, they consume considerable amounts of the court’s time and energy, which takes time way from other parties who also require and are entitled to the court’s attention."
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06/25, 4:54pm
Six older phones cited in January 2012 German Apple versus Samsung action
In the latest chapter of Apple and Samsung's legal travails in Germany, reports are surfacing that the same court which issued a preliminary injunction in the country against the Galaxy Tab 10.1 over a design patent will issue a similar ruling on Apple's claim that six older Samsung smartphones are also clear imitations of Apple products. Devices cited as infringing in this action include the Galaxy S I , Galaxy S Plus, Galaxy S II, Galaxy Ace, Galaxy R, and Galaxy Wave M.
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06/25, 10:04am
Samsung safe from charges of violating media sync patents
Japan's Intellectual Property High Court has upheld the Tokyo District Court's dismissal of an Apple lawsuit against Samsung, according to Bloomberg. In August 2012, the District Court ruled that there was no merit to Apple allegations that Samsung had infringed on patents related to media sync on mobile devices. "It’s hard to believe the products belong to the range of technologies of the claimant," the judge in the case stated at the time. Apple was ordered to cover the costs of the lawsuit, but filed an appeal of the dismissal in October.
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06/24, 12:00pm
Puts an end to damages claims over Spotlight, Time Machine, Cover Flow
The US Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal of the verdict in the Mirror Worlds v. Apple lawsuit, reports say. In 2008 Mirror Worlds accused Apple of infringing on its patents via OS X's Spotlight, Time Machine, and Cover Flow features. Although Mirror Worlds was initially awarded $625.5 million in damages, that verdict was overturned in 2012. The company had hoped to get damages reinstated on appeal.
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06/24, 11:15am
Refunds, iTunes credit offered as compensation
Settlement terms have been reached in the 2011 class action lawsuit over Apple's in-app purchase system, a new claims website indicates. The plaintiffs in the case argued that Apple's system allowed some developers to dupe children into buying large amounts of in-app content. While Apple normally requires an Apple ID login to authorize in-app purchases, until iOS 4.3 was released in 2011, a 15-minute window existed after an initial login during which more sign-ins weren't required.
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06/21, 9:42am
Final ruling to be issued later today
A court in Tokyo has ruled that several older Samsung smartphones violate an Apple "rubber-banding" patent, Reuters reports. The patent describes the way an iOS window bounces once a person has reached the end of a scrolling page. Samsung has sidestepped the patent with recent devices, changing its implementation of Android to only show a blue line at the end of a page, but the company could still potentially face damage payments and product injunctions. The court is expected to provide more details when it hands down a final ruling later today.
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06/20, 12:23pm
August 19th trial date looms
Apple and Amazon have yet to come to a settlement in the former's lawsuit over the term "app store," notes AppleInsider. The two parties were ordered to try and settle the case in January, but haven't made any progress despite multiple talks. These reportedly include an all-day meeting on May 1st, and a 45-minute phone call on June 14th.
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06/19, 4:49pm
Disputed patent acquired from Siemens
A Texas company, Bluebonnet Telecommunications, is suing Apple for patent infringement in relation to call forwarding technology. Specifically Bluebonnet says that the iPhone 4S and 5 violate US Patent No. 5,485,511, a patent that previously belonged to Siemens Rolm Communications but was picked up by Bluebonnet in June 1996. The patent describes a phone communicating with a central switch to generate a list of options, which are then displayed for the phone's user.
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06/05, 12:23pm
Lawyers ask to postpone conference to late July
Apple and THX are in talks to solve a lawsuit brought by the latter party over a speaker technology patent, new court documents reveal. Lawyers for both sides have filed a petition with the federal court in San Francisco to move a June 14th case-management conference to July 26th. "The parties are currently attempting to resolve this matter outside of this litigation," the filing reads.
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