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Apple, Samsung to argue potential bans on infringing phones December 6th in US District Court
Ardent followers of the Apple v. Samsung hearing in California have another date to circle in their calendars: December 6th. AllThingsD and Reuters report Judge Lucy Koh has put that down as the day the two companies can make their cases over two key steps in the process since the verdict (check out our breakdown of the decision and what its $1.05 billion damage award means here) was handed down Friday evening. Apple is requesting an injunction to block the sale of Samsung phones that were found to infringe upon its patents, while Samsung wants to have the jury's verdict set aside. This changes the plans for the previously scheduled September 20th hearing, which will focus on Samsung's effort to get the injunction lifted on its Galaxy Tab 10.1 that was found not to infringe upon Apple's design patent. Whether you'll be tuned in to Twitter for each line by line update or avoiding the internet altogether, at least now you know which day to plan for.
Breaking down Apple's $1 billion courtroom victory over Samsung
With a 20-page verdict form and 100 pages of instructions to explain it, many figured it would take longer for the jury to render a decision. But, the tech trial of the century has concluded, with Apple scoring a not-quite-flawless victory over its rival Samsung. While the company didn't win on every count, its cadre of lawyers did convince the nine jurors to award Apple over $1 billion in damages for Samsung's IP transgressions. Join us after the break and we'll hit you with the legal math that gave Apple a ten-figure bump to its bottom line -- and served as a shot across the bow of every other mobile phone manufacturer.
Apple, Samsung respond to the jury's decision; September 20th court date set for injunction hearing
Well. The verdict for the tech industry patent trial of the week is in, and the jury agreed with Apple's version of the events enough to award it a billion dollars and change in damages while awarding Samsung... nothing. Naturally, the two companies differ in their viewpoints on this ruling, with Apple celebrating a decision that supports its originality and innovation, and is "sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn't right." Samsung, on the other hand, claims it's all about standing up for the consumer, who it believes will be the true victim here, forced to pay more for fewer choices and less innovation now that one company has "a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners." Before we get to the inevitable appeals, Apple is seeking a preliminary injunction against Samsung's infringing products and Judge Lucy Koh has set September 20th as a date for the hearing. Apple has until the 29th to file its motion, which Samsung will have 14 days to respond to, before Apple has two days to craft a response of its own. While we all take a breather before the lawyers get back at it, you'll find the statements from both companies after the break. Update: As expected, Samsung has indicated it will appeal the ruling. Wall Street Journal's Evan Ramstad tweets that it plans to file post-verdict motions to overturn the decision and if those are unsuccessful, it will take its case to the Appeals Court.
Apple v. Samsung jury finds Apple's patents valid, awards it nearly $1.05 billion in damages
The federal court jury in the patent infringement lawsuit between Apple and Samsung has presented its verdict after deliberating for just 21 hours and 37 minutes following the three week trial. This particular case started with Apple's lawsuit last April and now the jury's decision is that Samsung did infringe on Apple's '381 bounceback patent with all 21 of its products in question. For the '915 patent on pinch-and-zoom, the jury ruled all but three of the devices listed infringed, and more damningly, found that Samsung executives either knew or should have known their products infringed on the listed patents. The jury has also found against Samsung when it comes to Apple's contours on the back of the iPhone and its home screen GUI. The Galaxy Tab, was found not to have infringed upon Apple's iPad design patents. The bad news for Samsung continued however, as the jury decided that not only did it willfully infringe on five of the seven Apple patents, but also upheld their validity when it came to utility, design and trade dress. The amount of the damages against Samsung is in: $1,051,855,000.00 (see below). That's less than half of the $2.5 billion it was seeking, but still more than enough to put an exclamation point on this victory for the team from Cupertino. The final number is $1,049,343,540, after the judge found an issue with how the jury applied damages for the Galaxy Tab 10.1 4G LTE and Intercept. The jury also ruled that Apple did not infringe upon Samsung's patents with the iPhone 3G and 3GS, and has awarded it zero dollars in damage. We'll have more information for you as it become available. Update: Both companies have released statements on the matter, with Apple stating via the New York Times the ruling sends a loud and clear message that "stealing isn't right." Samsung has its own viewpoint calling this "a loss for the American consumer" that will lead to fewer choices, less innovation and high prices. You can see both in their entirety after the break.
South Korean court rules Apple infringed on two Samsung patents, fines it $35k; Samsung gets hit too
We have yet another twist in the worldwide patent battle between electronics giants Apple and Samsung, as the Wall Street Journal and Reuters report a Seoul court has ruled in favor of the latter when it came to two patents in a case on its home turf. While it decided that Apple had infringed on two Samsung patents, it also found that Samsung had returned the favor on Apple's "bounceback" design patent, but not on another regarding icon design resulting in damages of about $22,000 Samsung. That's according to WSJ's Evan Ramstad, who also reports that other than the light financial slap on the wrist, the ruling means that the infringing products can no longer be sold in South Korea. The list of affected hardware includes mostly previous gen products like the iPhone 4 and iPad 2, as well as the Galaxy Tab 10.1, Galaxy S II and Galaxy Nexus. Asia Economic indicates the two patents Apple was found to have infringed are of the much-disputed standards-essential type relating to the transmission of data. This action doesn't appear to significantly tilt the battlefield in any particular direction, so we'll continue to keep an eye on the jury deliberating in California.
Samsung's defense against Apple patents begins with DiamondTouch table, LiveTile UI prior art
Samsung may have convinced Judge Koh to toss a few international handsets out of Apple's lawsuit, but the Korean firm still has Cupertino's patent licensing accusations to contend with. Their tactic? Convince the court that Apple's claim to the inventions are invalid, and that the technology was developed prior to the disputed patent's filing. It's called showing "prior art," and Sammy's done it before -- famously showing a scene from 2001: A Space Odyssey in an attempt to put Apple's iPad design claims to rest. Today's examples were more grounded in reality, focusing on debunking Cupertino's claim to the "bounce back" effect that happens when a user reaches the end of a page and common multitouch zoom / navigation gestures. Samsung pitted the famous "bounce back" feature against an old PocketPC interface called LaunchTile, which allowed users to navigate through 36 applications by zooming in and out and a panning across a grid-like "world view" of said apps. Movement between grids snap to each zone, marking the end of a page. Apple shot back, noting that LiveTile's snapping navigation didn't work on diagonals, and cited other differences as well. Samsung wasn't deterred, however, and brought out DiamondTouch, a projector based multitouch table that utilized both one touch scrolling and pinch-based zoom gestures. The table even takes aim at the aforementioned bounce-back patent with a technology called TableCloth, which bounces back images that are pulled off screen. DiamondTouch's creator, Adam Bogue, told the court that he had demoed the technology to Apple privately back in 2003, noting that it was also available to anyone who visited the Mitsubishi Electronic Research Laboratories' lobby. If the jury takes to Samsung's claims of prior art, it could severely cut Apple's claims against it. Even so, Cupertino's lawyers aren't going down without a fight, and still have a number of navigation and design claims that Samsung hasn't addressed. The two parties are expected to keep up the fight for about a week, we'll keep you posted on the inevitable revelations as they come.
Microsoft licensed design patents at issue in Apple v. Samsung, Surface lovers breathe sigh of relief
Last week, we found out about Apple's offer to license a bundle of IP -- including its iPhone and iPad design patents -- to Samsung back in 2010. Today, Reuters reports that Apple proposed a similar deal to Microsoft, and the folks in Redmond took them up on the offer. Details of the license itself are scarce, but the deal did, naturally, include an provision expressly prohibiting iDevice copies. So, for folks figuring that Microsoft might face a litigious future similar to Samsung's, think again. Looks like Ballmer and friends had the foresight to buy the rights to those rounded corners, edge-to-edge glass and black bezels on their forthcoming Surface tablets.
Apple details 2010 presentation to Samsung on Android patent infringement, licensing offer
As the battle between Samsung and Apple closed out another week in US District Court, lawyers for the latter focused its argument on evidence and testimony covering a presentation Apple made to Samsung in 2010, and its offer to license the patents. AllThingsD has the deck of slides from the meeting (embedded after the break), specifying areas and specific patents Apple believes Android as an OS infringes or things Samsung specifically copied elements from, plus a report on testimony from Apple executive Boris Teksler. He testified today about the meeting with Samsung, calling it a "trusted partner" (should be, since Apple paid it paid $5.7 billion for parts that year) that both Tim Cook and Steve Jobs spoke to directly about the issue. While more information is expected from Teksler next week, he did have time to put a dollar amount on the licensing deal Apple subsequently offered, at about $30 per smartphone and $40 per tablet, as well as royalties also collected from phones running Symbian and Bada, with the possibility of a 20 percent discount if Samsung would cross license its own technology back to Apple. The companies are restricted by Judge Koh to 25 hours each to argue their points (Apple is at 11 and a half hours while Samsung has crossed over 12 with its own arguments yet to come) but we're sure there's enough time left for a few more revelations before any resolution is reached.
Talkcast tonight, 7pm PT/10pm ET: Dog days edition!
It's Sunday again, like it or not, and as long as you can turn the air conditioner down low enough so the noise doesn't drown it out, you can join us tonight to record the Talkcast! We'll be discussing the latest and greatest (or not so greatest) news on Mountain Lion, the Apple/Samsung Showcase Legal Showdown, and include a PSA about security. It may be a warm one where you are, so tonight's Aftershow will likely include topics that go well with ice. Now it's really all about you, the community, so join me won't you? To participate, you can use the browser-only Talkshoe client, the embedded Facebook app, or download the classic TalkShoe Pro Java client; however, for +5 Interactivity, you should call in. For the web UI, just click the Talkshoe Web button on our profile page at 4 HI/7 PDT/10 pm EDT Sunday. To call in on regular phone or VoIP lines (Viva free weekend minutes!): dial (724) 444-7444 and enter our talkcast ID, 45077 -- during the call, you can request to talk by keying in *8. If you've got a headset or microphone handy on your Mac, you can connect via the free X-Lite or other SIP clients; basic instructions are here. Talk to you tonight!
Apple exec talks about the iPhone's early days, the secrecy of 'Project Purple'
The back and forth of Apple and Samsung's spat can be tiring, it's true, but the legal debacle has its moments. Cupertino's Scott Forstall, for instance, took the stand on Friday to give some insights on the beginnings of what Apple called "Project Purple," and the secrecy that surrounded the first iPhone's development. "We're starting another project," Forstall would tell potential recruits to the project, "It's so secret I cannot tell you what the project is. You are going to have to give up nights and weekends for a couple years." These were the words that conscripted much of the team that would eventually build Apple's first phone. Forstall said that the engineers he recruited weren't told anything about the project or even who they would report to -- eventually, Apple locked down one of its Cupertino buildings, affectionately calling it the "purple dorm" for its vague pizza-like aroma. When Apple's attorney questioned the senior vice president of iOS software about how the Project Purple team drove innovation, Forstall went on to describe the challenge of building a touch-centric OS. "Everything we dealt with before was based on mouse and keyboard, and here we were changing the entire user interface to be based around touch. We had to rethink everything about what big controls would be knowing where you are in the document, knowing when you reach the list... Every single part of every device had to be rethought for doing touch." Samsung's legal team was more concerned with how Project Purple was inspired by competitor devices; Forstall responded by saying that Apple simply tested Purple's call performance against other devices, noting that "it's fine to benchmark for performance reasons, it's not OK to copy and rip something off." The comments are interesting, but they probably won't weight too heavily on the jury's final decision. Still, the stories are entertaining, and worth a read for those interested in the iPhone's origins. Even so, we'll be glad when the patent wars are finally over.
Apple designer takes the witness stand in Samsung case, brings more iPhone / iPad prototypes along
Thought you'd seen all of the iPhones (and iPads)-that-never-were? If you did, then you were wrong as Apple industrial designer Christopher Stringer testified as a witness in the case vs. Samsung today, revealing many details about the company's design process. That included more pictures of phone and tablet prototypes being filed as evidence, while he reportedly also brought a few along for show and tell. The Verge has a few galleries of CAD shots and pictures of rejected designs, including more of the lozenge edged types we'd seen before, and iPads complete with a curved grip around the edge. AllThingsD chimes in with a few interesting tidbits from his testimony, including the revelation that Apple designers actually sit around a kitchen table to debate the progress of current projects, and explaining that earlier iPhone prototypes were labeled iPods either because they had not yet decided on a name, or were already trying to obscure iPhone identity from potential leaks. There's more info at the source links, take a careful look at the iThings around you and imagine what might have been.
Apple reveals 'Purple' phone prototype in court filing, to prove it didn't copy Sony
The previous batch of sketches revealed during Apple v Samsung suggested the iPhone may have actually borrowed ideas from Sony, but a new filing goes back even further into history to show that's not the case. The Verge spotted that the latest raft of paperwork includes a "Purple" prototype [above left] that was made around August 2005 and bears several hallmarks of the iPhone that finally appeared. The Sony-styled prototypes came later, and were apparently just an "enjoyable side project." AllThingsD has also drawn together around 100 prototypes from Apple's deposition, which offers some interesting insights into what the iPhone could have looked like.
Apple v. Samsung court filings reveal Sony-inspired iPhone, kickstand-equipped iPad and other prototypes
There's no telling how much more we'll see once the big Apple vs. Samsung trial finally gets underway in a San Jose federal court next week, but today has already seen the release of a swath of new documents full of surprises. Most notably, that includes a range of previously unseen Apple prototype devices, including various renderings of both the iPhone and iPad. One standout is an iPhone 4-esque device that quite literally wears its Sony influence on its sleeve (in one instance with the logo changed to "Jony," a la Apple's Jony Ive). According to the filing, it was designed by Apple's Shin Nishibori, and was apparently up against another more metallic, iPod-style device at one point (ultimately winning out despite some protestation). But those are far from the only iPhone prototypes that have been revealed. There's also an elongated device identified by the codename N90, seemingly with a small screen and space for a keypad or input area of some sort below, plus a device with squared off corners somewhat reminiscent of the Motorola Photon 4G. Another prototype goes in the opposite direction, with sharp corners and a slightly rounded back. As for the iPad, we've gotten a look at some more recent prototypes than the early 2000-era model that surfaced earlier this month. While there's no stylus in sight, there are a couple of iPad prototypes with kickstands built into the back of the device, and a number of considerably different designs than what Apple ultimately settled on. Dive into the galleries below for a closer look at the whole lot. Michael Gorman contributed to this report. %Gallery-161208% %Gallery-161207%
Apple demands $2.02, plus $3.10... equals a total of $2.5 billion in Samsung damages
How big is $2.525 billion when you're Apple? It won't affect living standards in Cupertino, that's for sure, but it's evidently enough to be worth hauling a rival through the US courts. The figure is revealed in Apple's damages claim, submitted in the run-up to its battle with Samsung in California, and is quite separate to other claims in Europe and Australia. If you're not already sick and tired of this feud, then the sums behind that big amorphous total make for curious reading. According to a unit cost breakdown by Foss Patents, Apple wants $2.02 for every previously sold Samsung product that uses "overscroll bounce," another $2.02 for those that allow "tap to zoom and navigate," $3.10 for those that involve a "scrolling API," plus a mega $24 for each and every device that breaks an Apple design patent or trade dress right. That means the bulk of Apple's claim -- as much as $2 billion -- is actually for aesthetic rather than technical infringements. Of course, these figures have no bearing on what the US court may eventually decide to award to either party, and neither do they factor in any strategic value of the blood from Samsung's nose, or the negative PR that can only grow amid such litigious behavior.
Apple denied stateside Galaxy S III injunction
Judge Lucy Koh has denied Apple's request for a domestic sales ban of Samsung's latest flagship. Her Honor put her foot down, saying that adding any more litigation to the already overcrowded docket would cause the courtroom action to be postponed again. Cupertino subsequently relented, eager to get the trial proper started, which is currently slated to begin on July 30th.
Samsung files yet another lawsuit against Apple in South Korea
In the global courtroom conflict that threatens to outlast the Thirty-Years War, Samsung has commenced yet another lawsuit against Apple. Filed in a Seoul court, this particular litigation broadside alleges that Cupertino has infringed patents on the displaying of data, user interface and short text messages -- sigh.
