Apple and Samsung Settle Patent Infringement Lawsuit
- Paul Thurrott
- Jun 27, 2018
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In an unexpected move, Apple and Samsung have agreed to settle their seven-year-old patent infringement lawsuit. Terms of the settlement are not yet available.
“They have agreed to drop [the lawsuits] and settle their remaining claims and counterclaims in this matter,” District Court Judge Lucy Koh announced today.
Neither Apple nor Samsung has commented on this new development. But Apple has pointed the press to its previous statement, from May, which suggests that it will be on the receiving end of some payment from Samsung.
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“We believe deeply in the value of design, and our teams work tirelessly to create innovative products that delight our customers,” the Apple statement noted. “This case has always been about more than money. Apple ignited the smartphone revolution with iPhone and it is a fact that Samsung blatantly copied our design. It is important that we continue to protect the hard work and innovation of so many people at Apple.”
The Apple/Samsung patent infringement lawsuit is famous mostly because it actually went to trial, giving onlookers the rare chance to see the indsutry’s two biggest companies go toe-to-toe. That said, Apple pretty much won handily at every phase, since, you know, Samsung really did copy its product designs.
In the most recent stage of the case, Samsung was ordered by a federal jury to pay Apple $539 million in damages.
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Conversation 14 comments
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skane2600
<p>I'm glad this is resolved but unfortunately the abuse of the patent process will continue. </p>
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dontbe evil
<blockquote><a href="#286707"><em>In reply to skane2600:</em></a></blockquote><p><br></p><p>totally agree, specially from the company that want to patent round corners</p>
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skane2600
<blockquote><a href="#286778"><em>In reply to RM:</em></a></blockquote><p>IMO the patents involved should never have been approved in the first place. Years of rubber-stamp patent approvals by the Patent Office has turned all major companies into patent trolls. </p><p><br></p><p>The purpose of patents was to encourage innovation by granting a short-term monopoly to individuals so they would be rewarded and could use that advantage to further fund their activities. Today patents are primarily used by large corporations to stifle competition and to receive unearned money through lawsuits for patents that they never intended to actually base a product on.</p>