patentinfringement
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HTC stops selling phones in UK while patent dispute rumbles on
HTC has stopped selling phones through its UK website while a patent issue plays out. Its handsets are all listed as out of stock, including the Exodus 1 blockchain phone, though the company is still selling them in other nations. They're also available through Amazon's UK site.
Qualcomm shells out billions to uphold Apple's German iPhone ban
Apple has been ordered to cease sales of older iPhones in Germany after Qualcomm paid security bonds of 1.34 billion Euros ($1.5 billion) to enforce a court-issued ban. The judgement was originally handed down on December 20th by a Munich court as part of an international patent dispute between the two companies. Apple was ordered to cease the sale, offer for sale and importation for sale of all iPhones that were deemed in infringement of Qualcomm's power saving technology.
China grants Qualcomm a ban on some iPhone sales, Apple files appeal
A Chinese court granted Qualcomm an injunction against Apple that halts sales and imports of most iPhone models in the country. The court ruled that several devices, including iPhone X, violated two Qualcomm patents related to resizing photos and managing apps. Shortly after this news broke, CNBC reported that Apple was mounting an appeal.
Apple wins appeal in $234 million patent infringement case
Apple has won its attempt to have a patent infringement damages award against it reversed. In 2015, a jury found that Apple had infringed University of Wisconsin-Madison patents with some iPhone processors, and ordered the company to pay the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (which handles the university's patent licensing) $234 million. Last year, a judge increased that figure to $506 million after determining Apple continued to infringe the patent until it expired at the end of 2016.
Qualcomm claims Apple stole trade secrets and sent them to Intel
The ongoing dispute between Apple and Qualcomm continues as Qualcomm seeks to add new charges to a current lawsuit it's pursuing against Apple. CNBC reports that Qualcomm is now alleging that Apple stole "vast swaths" of trade secrets through their partnership and used that information to help Intel improve its chips. The company is looking to amend allegations made against Apple in a lawsuit filed last November.
Facebook sues BlackBerry over voice messaging patent infringement
In the latest battle in the patent war between Facebook and BlackBerry, the social networking giant is suing the phone maker over alleged infringement of six patents, including one related to a voice messaging feature in BBM Enterprise. Facebook asked for a trial to resolve the matter and is seeking unspecified damages in the suit, which it filed in San Francisco federal court.
Retired professor sues Lyft for patent infringement
A retired Georgia Institute of Technology professor has sued Lyft for patent infringement, Reuters reports. The professor, Stephen Dickerson, filed his complaint with the New York Southern District Court on Monday through his company RideApp, and it claims that Lyft's business model infringes on Dickerson's ride-sharing patent, which he filed for in 2001. The patent was granted in 2004 and the rights were held by Georgia Tech until Dickerson reacquired them earlier this year. "Professor Dickerson was a transportation visionary," his attorney, Marc Kasowitz, said in a statement. "Lyft's infringement is entirely unwarranted and unlawful."
Bumble ‘swipes left’ on Match Group’s lawsuit allegations
Match Group, which owns Tinder, Match.com and OKCupid, recently filed a lawsuit against Bumble, claiming that its rival violated two of its patents. Now Bumble has clapped back. In an open letter published on its website, Bumble says in no uncertain terms that it believes the lawsuit to be an extension of Match's ongoing attempts to acquire it and calls the lawsuit "baseless."
Apple settles with Immersion over haptic feedback licensing
In 2016, haptic technology company Immersion filed two rounds of lawsuits against Apple. Both alleged that the tech giant had infringed upon some of Immersion's patents with the first focusing on the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s and 6s Plus as well as Watch, Watch Sport and Watch Edition. The second added the MacBook and MacBook Pro lines to its complaint. Immersion also filed a complaint with the US International Trade Commission (ITC), which launched an investigation into the alleged patent violations a few months later. But the saga may be nearing an end because today, Immersion announced that the two companies have reached a settlement.
TiVo sues Comcast again over alleged patent infringement
Though TiVo and Comcast just wrapped up a round of patent infringement litigation, TiVo's looking for another go. Yesterday, it filed lawsuits in California and Massachusetts alleging that Comcast's X1 set-top boxes are infringing on no less than eight of its patents. "Through decades-long investment in research and development, Rovi has created innovations that delight consumers in their day-to-day entertainment experience. Our commitment to our customers and stockholders compels us to protect these valuable inventions from unlicensed use," TiVo CEO Enrique Rodriguez said in a statement. TiVo was acquired by Rovi in 2016. The merged companies took the more recognizable name TiVo and at joining, they together held over 6,000 patents.
Chinese court rules Samsung violated Huawei patent
In 2016, Huawei sued Samsung in both China and the US for allegedly infringing on multiple wireless communication patents, and today a Shenzhen judge ruled against Samsung. The court ordered Samsung to stop selling any product using technology protected by the one patent it found the company to have violated and ordered Samsung to pay a small court fee.
Court rules Zepp has to stop selling its baseball and softball sensors
Zepp Labs' sensors let you analyze your performance across a number of sports, including baseball, softball, golf, tennis and soccer. But some of its performance-tracking products will soon be no more. In 2015, Blast Motion, a company that makes similar products, sued Zepp for patent infringement and today the two companies announce that they've reached a settlement.
iRobot and Black & Decker settle over alleged patent infringement
iRobot, maker of the Roomba vacuum, has taken to challenging its competitors over alleged patent violations in an effort to hold on to its market share. In April, it named a number of companies including Black & Decker, Bissell, iLife and Hoover in a complaint filed to the US International Trade Commission wherein it asked the commission to investigate their supposed patent violations and ban any products that it finds to incorporate any infringed upon intellectual property. Now, however, iRobot says it has reached an agreement with Black & Decker.
Microsoft sued over HoloLens patent infringements
Microsoft's HoloLens has hit a legal speed bump. The mixed-reality device, which is gaining traction with businesses, is at the center of a patent infringement lawsuit filed by HoloTouch. The Connecticut-based company alleges that HoloLens infringes on two of its patents -- dating back over a decade -- relating to its holographic imaging tech. HoloTouch is now seeking a jury trial and triple damages (although a specific amount hasn't been outlined), claiming that Microsoft "wilfully" knew about its patented technology for years.
Apple and Samsung are headed back to court... again
The case that never ends is going back to court. Back in 2012, Apple won a lawsuit against Samsung that sought damages for a handful of patent infringements involving smartphone functionality and design. At the time, Apple was awarded $1 billion, but that sum has been whittled down and in December of 2015, Samsung agreed to pay Apple a lesser $548 million. However, last December, the Supreme Court issued a ruling that overturned the 2012 decision, which ultimately led to yesterday's District Court decision to retry the case.
Nintendo ordered to pay $10 million in Wii patent lawsuit
Today, a Dallas jury awarded iLife Technologies $10 million in its patent infringement lawsuit against Nintendo of America. The suit, which was brought forth in 2013, alleged that Nintendo used iLife's technology when creating its motion-sensing Wii Remote.
DJI goes after Yuneec with patent infringement suit
Drones are a mainstream item in today's tech world, and two rival UAV makers are heading to court. DJI filed a patent infringement lawsuit in California against Yuneec for violating two of its patents. The company claims that Yuneec is selling products that infringe on one or more patents it holds regarding target tracking and an "interchangeable mounting platform." DJI seeks stop any sales of products that make use of its intellectual property.
Apple's $120M patent victory over Samsung overturned on appeal
The never-ending Apple vs. Samsung patent wars just had another chapter written today, long after most of us stopped caring. A US appeals court overturned the $120 million jury-appointed verdict that was awarded to Apple way back in May of 2014. Specifically, the court said that a variety of older Samsung phones (including the Admire, Galaxy Nexus, Galaxy Note, Galaxy Note 2, a host of Galaxy S II variants and the Galaxy S3) didn't infringe upon three Apple patents. The patents in question covered swipe to unlock, auto-correct and a quick link feature that lets links in one app open up another app.
Apple patent victory puts Samsung devices in jeopardy
Apple has won another small victory in its never-ending patent row with Samsung. The war that nobody asked for (and like most wars will have no winners, only losers) rages on with another appeals court decision. This one went in favor of Apple (as all but a few have), ruling that the company could force Samsung to stop using particular features on its cellphones and tablets. The ruling, while relatively narrow in scope, could still have significant consequences for Samsung and other device manufacturers.
BlackBerry sues Typo over its familiar-looking iPhone keyboard (update: Typo responds)
If you thought Typo's iPhone keyboard looked an awful lot like the keyboard from a BlackBerry Q10, you're not alone. BlackBerry has just sued Typo in a Northern California court for alleged patent infringement. The slide-on peripheral is a "blatant" copy of BlackBerry's signature input feature, according to the company. We've reached out to Typo for commentary, but it may not have many options -- the crew in Waterloo has patented a lot of keyboards, and it's hard to deny the strong resemblance. Update: Typo isn't going to take the lawsuit lying down; the company says that it plans to fight back, and claims that BlackBerry's accusations "lack merit." Read Typo's full statement below.
