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US Appeals court rules Motorola can't enforce injunction against Microsoft in Germany... again
In another face of the ever turning world of patent battles, Reuters reports Microsoft has snagged a victory over Motorola as the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in its favor today. Motorola had obtained an injunction in Germany against Microsoft products -- including the Xbox 360 and Windows 7 -- based on its h.264 patents back in May, but today the court upheld a previous decision putting enforcement on hold because of Microsoft's existing lawsuit against Moto for breach of contract. Microsoft's push to leverage its patents into licensing payouts from manufacturers of Android devices have seen the two at each other's throats since at least 2010, when the folks from Redmond lodged an ITC complaint over nine patents and followed up with another suit accusing Motorola of charging unfair license fees for its patents. Motorola fired back with its own pair of lawsuits -- all of this a year before we heard it would be acquired by Google -- and the battle was on. Whether or not this moves us any closer to any resolution remains to be seen, but at least Bavarian gaming consoles are safe, for now.
Post-acquisition Motorola files fresh ITC complaint against Apple
We hope you didn't think that Motorola would fight a purely defensive patent war against Apple after Google's acquisition closed. Just days before a final ruling on its initial complaints, the RAZR maker has filed another dispute with the International Trade Commission that accuses Apple of violating patents through some iOS devices and Macs. Exact details of the dispute are under wraps for now; Motorola, as you'd imagine, only contends that it has no choice after Apple's "unwillingness to work out a license." While Apple hasn't said anything about the subject, we already know how much it disagrees with Motorola's previous licensing strategy -- it's unlikely Apple will just roll over, no matter what's at stake.
ITU wants to bring smartphone makers to peace talks, hash out patent wars
The United Nations defines the stereotype of a peace broker, so it's not that far-fetched to hear that its International Telecommunication Union (ITU) wing is hoping to step in and cool down the rapidly escalating patent world war. The organization plans to convene a Patent Roundtable on October 10th -- in neutral Geneva, Switzerland, of course -- to have smartphone makers, governments and standards groups try and resolve some of their differences. Those mostly concerned about Apple's actions won't be happy with the focus of the sit-down, however. Most of the attention will surround allegations that companies are abusing standards-based patents, which will put the heat largely on a Google-owned Motorola as well as Samsung. Still, there's hope when the ITU's Secretary-General Dr. Hamadoun Touré talks of desiring a "balancing act" between what patent holders want and what customers need. Our real hope is that we don't have to hear talk of customs delays and product bans for a long while afterwards. [Image credit: Patrick Gruban, Flickr]
Apple hits HTC with counterclaim lawsuit for failure to FRAND license 4G patents
It's been far too quiet on the litigation front here at Engadget lately, but thankfully Apple's broken our courtroom news dry spell with a freshly filed counterclaim in the Eastern District of Virginia federal court. FOSS Patents reports that Apple's target is HTC, who Apple claims has abused two patents essential to the 4G/LTE wireless standard by using them in a legal action against Cupertino. In doing so, Apple asserts HTC breached its FRAND licensing obligations. The counterclaim was filed in response to an HTC-initiated complaint in the ITC, and comes hot on the heels of Apple's recent win in that case where it managed to exclude some Google patents that the Taiwanese firm borrowed to take Apple down. Will this new legal action meet the same success? We'll have to wait for lady justice to do her thing to find out, but in the meantime you can check out the source link for more.
InterDigital's Bill Merritt on patent trolls, standards development and disputes with the big boys
You probably won't know the name, but you most certainly use its technology on a daily basis. InterDigital is a pioneering company that helped develop WCDMA, 3G and HSDPA during its 50-year history. It counts former Apple CEO Gil Amelio as one of its directors, but the only time you'll ever hear its name is when it's embroiled in litigation. Either because it's suing, or being sued for licensing fees in the complex, murky world of wireless technologies, it's easy to get the idea that InterDigital is a patent troll. A name that, both Nokia and most recently, Huawei have barely stopped short of throwing at the company. But what's it like being painted as the villain in the wireless business pantomime? Company president and CEO William "Bill" Merritt took the time to answer some of our questions, talk about what the company actually does, what's in the future and why they definitely aren't a patent troll.
Google lobs antitrust complaint against Microsoft, Nokia in EU, claims they're playing patent footsie (updated)
The gloves just came off at Google: the company has just filed an antitrust complaint with the European Commission against Microsoft and Nokia. Its gripe accuses the two Windows Phone partners of playing dirty pool through handing 1,200 wireless-related patents to Mosaid, a Canadian firm which spends most of its time suing the industry over WiFi rather than making products. Microsoft and Nokia are allegedly hiking the prices of devices by "creating patent trolls" that bypass deals preventing them from suing directly, possibly steering a few companies towards picking Windows Phone instead of Android. Google argues that it's launching the complaint as an early defensive measure. Neither Microsoft nor Nokia has responded, although there's a degree of irony to the action: the complaints assert that Nokia is jeopardizing standards-based patents, but Google's recent acquisition Motorola has itself come under EU scrutiny for possibly abusing standards with its lawsuits against Apple and Microsoft. Either way, it's clear Google is concerned that Microsoft's Android patent licensing campaign might lose its decorum in the near future. Update: Nokia's decided to have its say, in an email to Reuters: "Though we have not yet seen the complaint, Google's suggestion that Nokia and Microsoft are colluding on intellectual property rights is wrong. Both companies have their own IPR portfolios and strategies and operate independently."
Nokia gets it: launches patent lawsuits against HTC, RIM and Viewsonic
Nokia has just announced that it is commencing patent litigation against HTC, Research in Motion and Viewsonic in the US and Germany. It's claiming that a number of its patents are being infringed and has registered complaints with the ITC and courts in Delaware, Dusseldorf, Munich and Mannheim. Espoo's legal chief Louise Pentland has said that while the company currently licenses its FRAND patents to "more than 40 companies," it had no choice but to lay some courtroom smack-down on the named offenders. It appears that after losing its global market share crown and billion-dollar losses, the company is finally going on the offensive with its deep patent portfolio. You can judge that for yourself when you read the official line after the break. Update: We've received some clarification from Nokia on what exactly is on the docket here. "Four of the patents asserted against Viewsonic in Mannheim are standards essential. The rest against Viewsonic and all against HTC and RIM are implementation patents, not declared essential to any standard and so we have no obligation to grant licenses."
