Apple Is Ordered to Pay $532.9 Million in Patent Case
Source: The Wall Street Journal.
Technology
Apple Is Ordered to Pay $532.9 Million in Patent Case
iTunes software infringes three Smartflash patents, a jury finds; Apple says it will appeal
By Angela Chen
[email protected]
Updated Feb. 25, 2015 9:11 a.m. ET
A Texas jury ordered Apple Inc. to pay $532.9 million after finding that the company’s iTunes software infringed three patents of privately held Smartflash LLC. ... The Cupertino, Calif., tech giant vowed to appeal the verdict.
Smartflash owns three patents related to data storage and payment management. The Tyler, Texas, company alleged that, in 2000, patent co-inventor Patrick Racz shared his ideas with Augustin Farrugia, then a member of the tech company Gemplus International SA. Mr. Farrugia is now a senior director at Apple.
Smartflash, which doesn’t make its own products, claimed that Apple violated the patents by using the technology in managing apps sold through its iTunes store, such as “Coin Dozer Pro” developed by Game Circus LLC and “Grub Guardian” and “WizardBlox,” developed by Kingsisle Entertainment Inc. The latter two companies had been defendants before being dismissed from the case.
The jury found that Apple had willfully infringed all three patents, and that Apple hadn’t proven the patents were invalid. Smartflash had sought $852 million in damages. ... “Smartflash makes no products, has no employees, creates no jobs, has no U.S. presence, and is exploiting our patent system to seek royalties for technology Apple invented,” said an Apple spokesperson, who added that the company plans to appeal the jury’s decision.
Read more: http://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-ordered-to-pay-533-million-in-patent-case-1424870806
Full disclosure: I own shares of Apple. I own several Macs. I am not a fanboi.
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