Apple vs. Samsung: complete coverage of tech's biggest trial
The drama that's unfolded for over a year between mobile juggernauts Apple and Samsung has finally resulted in a trial in California. Apple says that Samsung was obsessed with beating it and that it ripped off its designs, while Samsung says its designs are original and that Apple's own patents are invalid. Each side will have to convince the jury, and we'll be there covering the trial as it unfolds.
Apple's bounce-back patent receives 'final' rejection from US patent office
Apple received some bad news last Friday regarding its infamous bounce-back patent, US 7,469,381. That's one of the technical utility patents Samsung was found to infringe at trial, and it's been the subject of a formal reexamination process at the US Patent and Trademark Office since last July. In October each and every claim of the '381 patent was initially rejected. On Friday, however, the USPTO issued what's called a "final" action in the reexamination — again rejecting nearly all of...
Judge rules that Samsung did not infringe Apple patents willfully
Tonight one of the big outstanding issues in the Apple vs. Samsung case came to a close when Judge Lucy Koh ruled that Samsung's infringement of Apple patents was not in fact willful. At issue are the seven design and utility patents that the jury found Samsung had infringed in a $1.049 billion win for Apple last August. The jury had decided that Samsung's infringement in five of the instances had in fact been willful — a finding that could have led to a ballooning of the damages Samsung...
Samsung's juror misconduct argument will not result in a new trial with Apple
Samsung had hoped allegations of juror misconduct would win it a do-over in the Apple v. Samsung case, but tonight Judge Lucy Koh put those aspirations to rest by denying its request. Samsung had accused jury foreman Velvin Hogan of intentionally hiding information about a lawsuit he was involved in with Seagate. Samsung recently became a primary shareholder of the company, providing Hogan a reason to be biased. As such, the company had asked for an evidentiary hearing — in which all of the...
Samsung argues jury foreman was 'deliberately dishonest' in Apple trial
By Nilay Patel and Matt Macari
Apple and Samsung returned to Judge Lucy Koh's courtroom today to argue over potential sales bans, recalculated damages, and whether the actions of the jury foreman are reason for Apple's $1.049 billion verdict to be thrown out altogether. "It's déjà vu all over again," said the court reporter as she walked in — the two companies are at the beginning stages of what will almost certainly be a long appeals process.
Samsung's allegations of misconduct by jury...
Settlement gives HTC access to Apple utility patents, not designs
Last month Apple and HTC settled all of their patent litigation worldwide thanks to a 10-year licensing agreement — and now we're getting a look at a redacted version of that agreement courtesy of Samsung. The document is heavily redacted, with both the covered products and the fees paid by either side unreadable. What is visible, however, is what the agreement doesn't cover: it's specified that Apple's design patents and trade dress are still off limits to HTC. It seems to present a clear...
Eric Schmidt says it's 'extremely curious' that Apple lawsuits don't target Google directly
If you've been left a little nonplussed by Apple's lawsuits against Android hardware manufacturers, Google chairman Eric Schmidt is wondering the same thing. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Schmidt said it's "extremely curious that Apple has chosen to sue Google's partners and not Google itself." Apple recently settled its patent disputes with HTC out of court, and most famously won a protracted legal battle against Samsung earlier this year.
However, it's not too hard to see...
Apple and HTC will have to give their settlement agreement to Samsung
Earlier this month Samsung asked that the court force Apple to turn over its settlement agreement with HTC, and today US Magistrate Judge Paul S. Grewal granted that requested. According to Samsung, the document could play a vital role in determining whether it will need to take any of its products off the market in the wake of the $1.049 billion verdict Apple won back in August. If Apple licensed some of its unique user experience patents, Samsung argues, then Cupertino is clearly fine with...
Samsung hopes to use Apple and HTC settlement to stop sales ban
Earlier this week HTC and Apple put an end to their patent disagreements, and now Samsung is hoping to use that fact to prevent its own devices from being taken off the market. In a court filing today, Samsung asked the court to force Apple to turn over a copy of its settlement agreement to see which patents are covered in the deal. Specifically, Samsung wants to know if Apple licensed any of the patents that it was found to have infringed — including the bounce-back and pinch-to-zoom...
Judge agrees to consider Samsung's accusations of juror misconduct in Apple patent trial
Judge Lucy Koh has agreed to consider questions on whether Samsung's decisive legal loss in August was improperly influenced by jury foreman Velvin Hogan. Last month, Samsung asked the court to investigate whether Hogan had concealed information about previous legal entanglements that could have revealed an anti-Samsung bias, and whether he introduced outside information that affected the verdict.
Samsung hopes to prove that foreman Velvin Hogan lied by omission
Yesterday, Judge Koh issued...
Samsung to question Phil Schiller again as it seeks to stop product ban
During the Apple vs. Samsung trial, Samsung was able to question high-level Apple personnel like Phil Schiller and Scott Forstall (then still the head of the iOS team). As part of the post-trial action, US magistrate judge Paul S. Grewal has ordered that Samsung will get another crack at Schiller for three hours of deposition questioning.
The questioning is in connection with Apple's pursuit of a ban on some of the products that the jury found infringed Apple's intellectual property. At...
Apple rebuts juror misconduct claims, says Samsung dropped the ball
Earlier this month Samsung accused the jury foreman in the Apple v. Samsung trial of misconduct, arguing that Apple's $1.049 billion win should be thrown out in favor of a new trial. Now Apple has filed its response with the court, saying that Samsung had its shot to investigate foreman Velvin Hogan during jury selection — and that it's too late to complain now.
One of the main issues is that during jury selection Hogan was asked if he'd been involved in any lawsuits. He did mention one,...
Samsung accuses jury foreman of misconduct in loss to Apple, but can it prove it?
There was never any doubt that every nook and cranny of the jury's verdict would be dissected and challenged after Samsung suffered a huge loss in its historic infringement trial against Apple in August. That's the norm — losers and winners in nearly every case ask the presiding judge to overturn or modify portions of the jury's verdict. What they don't often do is ask the court to investigate a particular juror for misconduct. But Samsung's lawyers were listening closely to what jury...
Judge Koh dissolves sales ban on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1
Samsung has been pushing for the preliminary injunction on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 to be lifted ever since Apple won its $1.049 billion victory, and today it got its wish: Judge Lucy Koh has dissolved the US sales ban on the tablet. It's the latest twist in a long and winding story for the Galaxy Tab 10.1. Back in June, Judge Koh granted a preliminary injunction based on the likelihood that the Tab infringed upon the iPad's hardware design patent. However, while the jury found that the...
Apple loses Samsung patent case in Japan (update)
Samsung may have lost its war with Apple in California, but it's winning small battles elsewhere. Following the company's recent victory in its home nation of South Korea, a Tokyo court has ruled in its favor in Japan. The Nikkei reports that Apple's case dealt with a patent covering the syncing of media files between devices, and eight Galaxy products sold by NTT Docomo and KDDI were alleged to have infringed.
Apple was seeking ¥100 million (about $1.275 million) in damages and an...
The myth of pinch-to-zoom: how a confused media gave Apple something it doesn't own
In 2007, Steve Jobs stood on stage, listing the benefits of Apple's then-new iPhone touchscreen. "You can do multi-finger gestures on it," he said, moving his hands back and forth in the now-familiar pinch-to-zoom motion. Then he paused, and his expression changed. "And boy, have we patented it." The crowd laughed and began applauding as the word "Patented!" appeared on the screen behind him.
You can draw a straight line from that classic Jobs moment to last week, when a jury decisively...
Apple can't ban infringing Samsung products until December under new court schedule
Mere hours after the jury returned its $1.049 billion verdict in the Apple v. Samsung case, Judge Lucy Koh informed both parties that a hearing would be held in September to discuss any new injunctions Apple would be seeking againt Samsung's products. A change in Koh's strategy has shifted the playing field, however — and both sides now aren't scheduled to discuss any new injunctions until December 6th.
In an order filed this afternoon, Koh lays out the new post-trial schedule, writing...
Samsung working with US carriers to update phones facing injunction
Samsung is actively speaking with US carriers about removing infringing features from the eight handsets Apple is seeking injunctions against, reports The Wall Street Journal. Of course, the company first plans to plead its case to Judge Lucy Koh in the hopes of preventing sales from being halted, but it's clear Samsung is also preparing for a worst case scenario in which Apple's requests are granted.
Samsung has stated it has software workarounds for two patents the jury found were...
Samsung memo to employees: 'disappointed' by verdict
Samsung took quite the blow in its case against Apple last week when the jury awarded nearly every decision in Apple's favor. In addition to the public statement Samsung released after the decision was announced, the Korean company quickly issued an internal memo to its employees. Unsurprisingly, Samsung reiterates its stance that it does not agree with the jury's decision, and that it feels "that the consumers and the market will side with those who prioritize innovation over litigation."
"...
Google responds to Apple v. Samsung verdict: most claims 'don't relate' to 'core Android'
In the wake of Friday's $1.049 billion jury verdict, Apple and Samsung quickly released statements to the press — but one company that remained conspicuously silent was Google. The company has now provided us with a response to the decision, stating that "The court of appeals will review both infringement and the validity of the patent claims."
"We work with our partners to give consumers innovative and affordable products."
Google stops well short of adopting Samsung's own strident...
Apple vs. Samsung: the jury's final verdict form shows the breadth of Apple's win
The jury's final verdict form has been released in the Apple vs. Samsung case, and as you can see above it's a sea of "y" for "yes, it infringes" marks on a wide swath of Samsung's phones. Samsung did manage to avoid losing when it came to some of the patents put against its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet, but it didn't win with any of the patents it asserted against Apple. The damages from the case were adjusted slightly, as this form contained some errors that the jury let into the initial ruling,...
The next step in Apple vs. Samsung: injunction hearing on September 20th
The Apple vs. Samsung trial continues now that the verdict has come down. After the jury returned with some corrections to its initial verdict to resolve some of the inconsistencies in its findings, it was excused from the courtroom and Judge Lucy Koh discussed the next stage in the trial with both sides: a preliminary hearing on injunctions based on the verdict. Given that many of Samsung's phones were found to infringe on Apple's patents and that many of them are still for sale today, it's...
Apple CEO Tim Cook: verdict is 'a loud and clear message that stealing isn’t right'
After Samsung reacted to the Apple vs Samsung verdict, Apple has also chimed in with a statement to the New York Times that predictably expresses happiness over the Jury's verdict. Citing the "mountain of evidence" it presented against Samsung, the company went so far as to say that it shows the "stealing isn't right."
We are grateful to the jury for their service and for investing the time to listen to our story and we were thrilled to be able to finally tell it. The mountain of evidence...
Apple decisively wins Samsung trial: what it means
After two and a half days of deliberations, the Apple vs. Samsung jury returned a decisive verdict in Apple's favor today — holding that Samsung owes Apple $1.049 billion for copying Apple's intellectual property. Specifically, the jury found that all three of Apple's software patents on the iOS user interface were valid and infringed by a long list of Samsung devices, that Apple design patents were valid and infringed by several Samsung phones, and that Apple's trade dress on the iPhone...
Jury: Samsung diluted Apple's trade dress for the iPhone, but not iPad
Throughout Apple vs. Samsung, trade dress is a term that has come up a lot — effectively, the debate hinges on whether or not there's an important connection between Apple's designs and consumers' perceptions of the companies. Apple alleged that Samsung copied its designs, and thus intentionally confused customers, "diluting" the brand and its connection with customers. The jury had to decide both whether there was anything to infringe, and whether or not Samsung did so. After 21 hours and...
Samsung infringed on Apple iPhone design patents, but not iPad design patents, jury rules
As the jury slogs through the twenty-page final verdict form in the Apple vs. Samsung trial, it has given its decision on one of the more critical aspects of the case: whether Samsung infringed on Apple's design patents for the look and feel of its devices. The jury needed to decide the issue on four different design patent as they apply to over over a dozen different Samsung devices, and furthermore had to also distinguish between three different corporate entities. In short, it was a...
Jury: Samsung willfully infringed Apple's software patents, Apple didn't infringe Samsung's
The first verdicts out of Apple vs. Samsung are in, covering claims 19, 8, and 50 of the '381, '915, and '163 software patents, respectively — those are the patents that cover "bounce back" scrolling functionality, multitouch gesture detection, and tap-to-zoom. Did Samsung infringe, according to the jury?
For claim 19 of '381, the answer is yes for all devices.
For claim 8 of '915, the answer is yes for all but the Ace, Intercept, and Replenish.
For claim 50 of '163, the answer is yes for...
Jury: Samsung copied Apple, should pay at least $1.049 billion in damages
After a surprisingly short time in deliberations, the jury in the Apple v. Samsung case reached a verdict today. The nine jurors decided unanimously that Samsung had infringed on Apple's intellectual property, and while Cupertino won't be getting the more than $2.5 billion it asked for, it will be getting at least $1,049,343,540.
Apple vs. Samsung: you be the jury (poll)
After we published our huge breakdown of the insane Apple vs. Samsung jury form yesterday, I got a lot of requests from readers to do a poll on which company would win the case. That was actually our first idea — but with over 700 interdependent questions on the jury form, it's almost impossible to code up a workable poll using off-the-shelf tools, and most people probably wouldn't fill out the whole thing any way.
But to give you just a small taste of what the jury in this historic case is...
Apple vs. Samsung: inside a jury's nightmare
By Nilay Patel, Matt Macari, and Bryan Bishop
After weeks of trial and impassioned closing arguments from both sides, the historic Apple vs. Samsung lawsuit is now in the hands of the jury. The seven-man, two-woman panel began deliberating yesterday at 9AM, and they'll carry on today and every day until they reach their decisions. It will be a monumental task.
Although Apple and Samsung did their best to present high-level narratives about copying and product development throughout the...
Apple and Samsung go for blood in closing arguments
After weeks of witnesses, prototypes, and one last failed settlement talk, it came down to this: Apple and Samsung's closing arguments in what is very likely the tech trial of the century. The day saw both sides landing heavy blows before sending the case off to the jury — where anything can happen.
There was an undeniable buzz in the courtroom to start the day, with media and members of the public lining up as early as 6:15AM — even though the day's proceedings didn't start until almost...
Apple and Samsung CEOs talk over settlement, but 'there was no resolution'
We'd heard rumors that the CEOs of Apple and Samsung were getting together today for one last court-mandated meeting, but their discussion proved unfruitful. Samsung attorney Kevin Johnson just told Judge Lucy Koh that "The CEOs did speak... There was no resolution." The meeting was a last-ditch attempt to bring the legal battle between the two companies to a conclusion before closing arguments start tomorrow.
Johnson's announcement marked the end of a long day of legal wrangling, with both...
Samsung and Apple CEOs reportedly meeting today for final patent trial talk
Apple's Tim Cook and Samsung's Kwon Oh Hyun will try to come to an agreement over their companies' long-running patent dispute today, an anonymous source has told Bloomberg. After a phone call between the CEOs takes place, company lawyers will report the outcome to Judge Lucy Koh, determining whether a settlement is possible or whether the jury will proceed to deliberation, something that is currently planned for this Wednesday. Koh has repeatedly asked the companies to settle, but mediation...
Apple v. Samsung turns into ‘he said, she said' on the final day of testimony
A parade of familiar faces made their way through the courtroom today as Apple and Samsung finished up their rebuttal cases, with the last few hours consisting of expert upon expert saying the other was wrong. Apple, however, may have struck gold in taking out some of Samsung's strongest arguments against tap-to-zoom and bounce-back patents.
The day started off with a light touch, spirits no doubt buoyed by the knowledge that this would be the last day of testimony. Judge Lucy Koh made a...
Samsung wraps up testimony in Apple v. Samsung
It's been a sprint this afternoon as both sides worked against a ticking clock, but Samsung has now rest its rebuttal case, less than an hour after Apple did the same. It's the end of testimony in the high-stakes trial, but it's going to be a few days before we have even the hope of any answers. Both parties will be discussing jury instructions with Judge Lucy Koh on Monday, and closing arguments are scheduled for Tuesday. Koh hopes that the jury will begin deliberations on Wednesday, and...
Apple rests in Apple v. Samsung
With 16 minutes left on the clock, Apple has rest its case in the Apple v. Samsung trial. The company's legal team finished up its primary offensive case earlier this week, and spent the majority of today questioning witnesses for its rebuttal case. Samsung has 37 minutes left for its rebuttal this afternoon. We'll have more for you shortly.
Apple accuses Samsung of bad faith with standards-essential patents
This morning two Apple witnesses attacked Samsung for not living up to its responsibilities with its standards-essential patents — and violating the spirit of FRAND as well. At issue are two Samsung standards-essential patents that apply to UMTS technology. In 2005, Samsung lobbied for several changes that were made to the 3GPP Standard. Per the company's agreement with the standards body, it needed to disclose any associated intellectual property rights it held before the changes were...
Susan Kare returns to the stand: Samsung's designs were a choice, 'not a requirement'
Last week former Mac icon designer Susan Kare took the stand in Apple v. Samsung, and Apple called her back today to counter testimony from one of Samsung's designers. Kare was asked directly about the testimony of Jeeyeun Wang, who had described Samsung's design choices — icons with background image "containers" around them, and the use of a green phone icon — as functional necessities. Kare disagreed.
"What's important on a touchscreen is that there's a target for your finger," she said...
Judge to Apple and Samsung: what makes you so special?
We've seen the tone in the tech world's biggest patent case take a turn for the worse over the last several days, and the hits just keep on coming. Whether it's coming from lawyers frustrated by time constraints or verbal lashings from an irrate judge, the negative vibe is everywhere: this thing needs to end...now. Judge Lucy Koh's frustrations with the parties and the overall progress of the case may have peaked today, but the court is really represented by the combined voice of Koh and her...
Apple v. Samsung: the cracks begin to show as closing arguments loom
A judge's outburst. One attorney accusing another of listening into private conversations. A disinterested juror, bopping his head to a private groove, a Johnny Rotten snarl on his face
Three weeks into Apple v. Samsung, the cracks are starting to show.
There seem to be more attorneys in the hallways. Each court break feels like it lasts a little longer. There's a caffeinated buzz when the legal teams gather around their tables, waiting for things to resume. As we get closer to closing...
Apple calls on former employees to defend it from Samsung's accusations
Apple began its rebuttal case this afternoon, and it used a pair of former employees to argue against claims it had infringed Samsung's utility patents. Path employee Emilie Kim, formerly of the iOS software team, was up first to explain the nuances of the iOS Camera and Photos apps. She was followed by Dr. Paul Dourish, who had previously worked in Apple's research labs, and addressed several of the same subjects while also arguing that one of Samsung's patents was invalid outright.
S...
Samsung rests its case after asking Apple for up to $421.8 million
We know how much Apple thinks it should be paid for Samsung's alleged infringement, and now Samsung is making its wants known: according to two witnesses today, Apple should pay Samsung as much as $421.8 million if infringement is found.
Dr. Vincent O'Brien testified about three utility patents covering email, photo browsing, and music playback functionality. SInce Samsung hasn't lost any sales due to the alleged infringement, monetary damages come down to reasonable royalty rates: an...
Judge Koh asks Apple's attorneys if they're 'smoking crack'
Judge Lucy Koh has been going increasingly terse with both Apple and Samsung as the trial continues, and she just let Apple have it after receiving a 75-page briefing. The document covered 22 potential rebuttal witnesses the company might want to call after Samsung finishes presenting its case. With the jury out of the courtroom, Koh laid into Apple, asking why it would present such a lengthy document "when unless you're smoking crack you know these witnesses aren't going to be called!"
Apple...
Samsung's profits on accused devices just $519 million, says expert
One of Samsung's witnesses today called into question the veracity of Apple's damages report, testifying that Cupertino's expert hadn't factored in Samsung's total costs in making and selling its products. Michael Wagner explained to the jury that Apple's damages analysis, which was provided by Terry Musika, listed Samsung's total profits for the accused devices as $2.241 billion. The analysis didn't incorporate all of the costs involved with the research, development, and promotion connected...
Samsung industrial designer claims the iPad 2 didn't inspire thinner Galaxy Tab 10.1
Today a Samsung industrial designer testified that the company's Galaxy Tab 10.1 project predated the launch of the iPad, and that Samsung did not redesign the tablet in response to the iPad 2 — despite an executive's public statements to the contrary. Samsung called to the stand Jin Soo Kim, one of the company's principal industrial designers, who stated via interpreter that the Tab 10.1 project began back in October of 2009 (Apple unveiled the iPad on January 27th, 2010). He then showed...
Jeff Han's multitouch demo makes a courtroom appearance as Samsung argues patent validity
Samsung's been taking on the validity of Apple's utility patents today, and it just showed Jeff Han's 2006 multitouch demo to help do it. Stephen Gray testified for Samsung, explaining his findings that two of Apple's utility patents — which cover tap-to-zoom and multitouch functionality — aren't valid because software and patents containing the same features already existed.
Apple's multitouch patent describes a way for a system to differentiate between different types of touch input —...
Samsung expert: Apple's bounce-back patent is invalid, Patent Office never saw prior art
Samsung made its most compelling argument yet on why Apple's '381 bounce-back patent shouldn't be consider valid, with an expert witness providing a lengthy look at the Tablecloth application we saw this week. Dr. Andries van Dam, a faculty member at Brown University since 1965, walked the jury through the elements specified in the '381 patent, each of which appeared to be met by the application — and in his opinion, rendering the patent invalid due to prior art.
Tablecloth runs on the...
Intel gets caught in the middle as Apple and Samsung question baseband processor expert
Samsung began making its case this morning that Apple had infringed two of its standards-essentials patents, but it was Intel that took center stage as Cupertino pointed to the chip manufacturer as its main defense. Tim Williams testified about two of Samsung's standards-essential patents — the '941 and '516 patents — that cover technologies relating to packet transmission and power regulation for data channels on cellular devices. In his research, Williams found that both the iPhone 4...
Judge requests Apple and Samsung CEOs meet one more time before case goes to jury
Judge Lucy Koh has pushed several times for Apple and Samsung to settle their differences outside of the courtroom, and this morning she asked that the CEOs of both companies meet one last time before the jury begins deliberations. "I don't mean to waste their time," she said, but noted that she sees peril for both sides— even outside of the possibility of a hung jury.
If Apple and Samsung's primary goals have been to raise awareness of their intellectual property, Koh said, "mission...
iPhone and iPad designs are 'obvious' and shouldn't be protected, says Samsung expert
Apple has spent quite a bit of time describing how unique the visual characteristics of the iPhone and iPad are, but a Samsung expert witness disagrees, stating today that the designs of each of the devices was obvious given several examples of prior art. Itay Sherman took the stand to discuss three Apple design patents: the '677 and '087 patents that describe the front face of the iPhone, and the '889 patent that covers the iPad design.
Sherman showed four examples of prior art when...
Samsung designer describes late nights when working on Galaxy S, says 'we did not' copy iPhone
We've heard from quite a few experts talking about the design of Apple and Samsung products, but today in court an actual Samsung icon designer took the stand — and stated emphatically the company hadn't copied any Apple designs. Testifying through a translator, Jeeyeun Wang explained that she was a senior designer in Samsung's wireless design team, and had personally selected the green phone icon that Apple alleges was copied from the iPhone.
Wang explained that Samsung designers work just...
Samsung accuses Apple of ripping off patented email, photo, and music features
Samsung began its half of the trial by defending itself from Apple's allegations, but now it's downshifted into its countersuit claims. The company's legal team called Dr. Woodward Yang, a professor at Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, who had performed an analysis of three Samsung utility patents, and found that Apple infringed them with multiple devices.
The '460 patent protects elements of email and photo browsing in a camera-equipped device. Specifically, it covers...
Samsung calls Apple patents into question with LaunchTile and DiamondTouch table
Samsung started off its case today by going straight at the heart of Apple's utility patents, showing off two software systems with similar functionality that pre-date iOS altogether. Adam Bogue, president of Circle 12, showed off images and video of a projection-based touchscreen surface called the DiamondTouch Table. Developed in 2001 at the Mitsubishi Electronic Research Laboratory (MERL), the DiamondTouch featured two particularly-relevant pieces of software: Fractal Zoom, an application...
Apple rests its case after claiming it lost 2 million iPhone and iPad sales due to Samsung
Apple finished up its case against Samsung today after calling a financial expert to the stand today who estimated that Cupertino may have lost 2 million iPhone and iPad sales due to the alleged infringement. CPA Terry Musika began by walking the jury through a breakdown showing how many accused devices Samsung sold in the US — and how much revenue they brought in (we first saw the report last week). The report is the starting point for determining the damages Apple is requesting if it wins...
Judge cuts international Galaxy S, S II, and Ace from Apple v. Samsung trial
Judge Lucy Koh has just ruled that the Galaxy S GT-i9000, the S II GT-i9100, and Galaxy Ace are no longer part of the Apple v. Samsung trial — the jury will not answer the all-important questions of whether or not they copied the iPhone's trade dress or infringed Apple's patents.
After Apple wrapped up its testimony earlier today, Samsung provided an hour-long argument for a judgement as a matter of law (JMOL), asking the judge to rule that Apple hadn't proved its case sufficiently, and...
48 percent in Apple survey picked Android over the iPhone to stay with their carrier (update)
We're seeing some new internal documents during today's Apple v. Samsung testimony, and this time it's a survey Apple put together on why consumers considering an iPhone went with Android instead. According to Apple's results, the most predominant reason had nothing to do with Google's mobile OS at all: 48 percent stated "Wanted to stay with current provider" as a motivating factor. The survey itself was presented in January 2011, the month the IPhone came to Verizon.
Trusting the Google...
Apple and Microsoft cross-license deal includes 'anti-cloning' protections going back to 1997
Apple's broad cross-licensing agreement with Microsoft has been common knowledge for over a decade, but we've been able to extract some previously unknown details of the agreement from today's testimony in the Apple v. Samsung trial. Apple's director of patent licensing and strategy, Boris Teksler, testified that while the licensing agreement between the companies broadly covers technical and design patents, it does still provide some protection against verbatim copying of products in the...
Samsung tries to mislead jury while questioning Apple patent experts
Samsung's been successful in undermining some of Apple's expert witness thus far, but the company's legal team may have pushed too far today — and given the impression that it's trying to mislead jurors in the process. Apple called professor Rasvin Balakrishnan to testify about the "bounce-back" patent. Balakrishnan was one of the best witnesses we've seen to date, taking the jury step by step through the nuances of the patent, and why some 20 Samsung smartphones and tablets infringe upon...
New internal Samsung documents show more iPhone envy, a strong desire to emulate
Tonight's court documents in the Apple vs. Samsung case included a 94-page document that once again shows that Samsung spent a considerable amount of time comparing its products to the iPhone. Perhaps more importantly for Apple's case, the document comparing the "Behold 3" (aka the Vibrant) to the iPhone contains many "Suggested Improvements" that often read like attempts to emulate the iPhone.
Of course, the devil is in the details and it will be up to the jury to decide if it amounts to an...
Apple asked Samsung to pay as much as $30 per Android phone, $40 per tablet for patent licenses
As Apple v. Samsung progresses, it's been known for some time that it didn't have to come to this: Apple had made overtures in the past toward the electronics giant in the past in an effort to secure a licensing deal that would cover patents it believed were being infringed, noting that Samsung is a "strategic supplier." In court documents released today, we now learn that Apple had a dollar figure in mind in an October 2010 meeting — it was proposing that Samsung pay a base rate of $30 per...
Apple's warning to Samsung: 'Android is designed to lead companies to imitate the iPhone'
We first heard about a presentation Apple made to Samsung about copying its devices in today's testimony, and now the entire document has been filed — and it levies some serious accusations not just at Samsung, but at Google and Android as well. First shown to Samsung executives in August of 2010, the 67-page document lists numerous patents that Apple claims are being infringed by Samsung smartphones, and they all share one common denominator: Google's mobile operating system. "Apple has...
Apple patent director: only copycats like Samsung need our patents
Apple's Director of Patent Licensing and Strategy, Boris Teksler, took the stand this afternoon to provide a look inside the company's stance on patent licensing — and the meetings and negotiations that took place between Apple and Samsung.
The chain of events that led up to the trial began in summer of 2010, with the release of the Samsung Galaxy S. Teksler echoed the sentiments of other Apple executives we've heard from: the company was shocked. "First, they were a trusted parter of ours,...
Apple expert: smartphone owners are willing to pay $100 premium for features Samsung copied
Apple's been showing the results from a number of surveys today, and one expert witness just made one of the more intriguing statements we've heard: smartphone users would be willing to pay a $100 premium for the features Samsung is accused of copying. Dr. John Hauser, a professor of marketing at MIT, came to his conclusions after conducting an online survey, and found that the iOS "bounce-back" feature was worth a $39 premium to smartphone owners on its own; coupling the feature with...
Apple breaks down damage claims against Samsung, asks for $2b from Galaxy S profits alone
Yesterday, documents from the Apple v. Samsung trial brought us some eye-opening US sales figures covering hardware from both companies. A filing from Apple today makes for a good comparison to that data, with its lawyers outlining damages that specify how much of Samsung's profits they're entitled to from each device cited in the trial. Samsung's profits are relevant in this case because under US patent law, a design patent owner is uniquely entitled to the infringer's profits. All told,...
Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch looked like an Apple product to a majority of survey respondents
An important component of Apple's legal case against Samsung is demonstrating that its brand suffered dilution due to Samsung's devices, and a survey discussed today found that over 50 percent of respondents associated the design of two Samsung phones with Cupertino.
Apple witness Kent Van Liere took the stand in San Jose today to discuss the studies he'd conducted. In the first, he showed participants images of the Samsung Fascinate and Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch; they were also shown the...
Samsung's surprise bestseller: the prepaid Galaxy Prevail
Apple and Samsung's court filings have revealed plenty of US sales numbers for the companies, but one unassuming phone stands out: the Galaxy Prevail, an Android 2.2 phone that launched on non-contract network Boost. According to the sales charts, the Prevail sold almost 2.3 million units in the US, outstripping the more lucrative Epic 4G, which launched in 2010. Sales peaked in mid-2011 around launch, but it continued to sell solidly through 2012.
The Prevail was the first CDMA phone to...
Confidential Apple and Samsung sales numbers revealed in court filing
The Apple v. Samsung trial has already provided a bonanza of inside information on both companies, and the trend continued today with a court filing that revealed US sales numbers for both companies. The document, prepared for the trial by the Invotex Group, lists the US sales numbers for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch, as well as 24 different Samsung smartphones, and three members of the Galaxy Tab line. While Apple usually prefers to tout global figures, in the document we see that the...
Apple v. Samsung skewered in Conan O'Brien parody
The legal case between Apple and Samsung is obviously big news for those that follow technology, but the conflict has broken into the mainstream as well. Conan O'Brien debuted a video on last night's episode of Conan that takes a fair number of shots at Samsung, portraying the company as slavishly cribbing designs from Apple for everything from washing machines to vacuum cleaners. There's even a reference to Samsung's "founder": Stephan Jobes. It's not the best video we've seen from Team Coco...
Apple
132-page document shows full extent of iPhone's influence on Samsung interface design
Apple succeeded today in getting the entirety of an internal Samsung report comparing the iPhone to its own Galaxy S admitted into evidence. First reported by All Things D, the 132-page document paints a picture of Samsung recognizing superior elements of Apple’s user experience and changes Samsung needed to make in order to improve its own products. In most cases, these "Directions for Improvement" amounted to adding features or details where Apple’s interface was better, and subtracting...
Apple
Apple bounces back as the courtroom conversation turns to icons and iPads
Yesterday may not have been the best day in court for Apple, but Cupertino rebounded today, calling several witnesses that were able to effectively argue its case — while Samsung received another slap from Judge Lucy Koh.
Samsung began the day by accusing Apple of tampering with one of the joint exhibits — an Epic Touch 4G — to make its icon layout look more like the iPhone. Samsung claimed to have learned of the issue over the weekend, and presented an alternative picture it said was...
Apple
Over 75 percent of survey respondents associated iPad design with Apple, says expert
An expert witness called to the stand today by Apple described surveys he'd conducted to determine how heavily consumers identify the company with the look of the iPhone and iPad. Hal Poret, a researcher at ORC International, put together studies for each device in preparation for the trial. He took images of the iPad 2, one from straight on and another from an angled view, and blurred the homescreens in each image. Two non-Apple tablets — also with blurred homescreens — served as a...
Apple
Classic Mac icon designer Susan Kare takes the stand: live from Apple v. Samsung
Designer Susan Kare has been called to the stand today to testify in the Apple v. Samsung trial. Kare was a member of the Macintosh team in the project's early days, and was responsible for such well-known classics as the "happy Mac" startup graphic, the Chicago and Geneva fonts, and the lasso and paint bucket icons. The icon layout of the iPhone is in play in both Apple's design patent and trade dress infringement claims, and we expect Kare will have quite a bit to say on the subject.
Kare...
Samsung slammed by judge after accusing Apple of tampering with evidence
Things at Apple v. Samsung kicked off with a bang this morning, as Samsung accused Apple of tampering with the icon layout of one of its phones to look more like the iPhone. At issue is a photograph of the Epic Touch 4G that Apple presented which shows an icon layout that closely mirrors that of the iPhone. Samsung objected, saying that it noticed yesterday that the phone doesn't represent the state of the Epic 4G Touch out of the box. Samsung presented its own photo — which its attorneys...
Apple
Apple's expert witness struggles as Samsung goes on the attack
Apple's first expert witness took the stand today to outline what appeared to be damning similarities between the company's design patents and several Samsung devices — but Samsung responded with a lengthy and detailed cross-examination that may have left the witness damaged in jurors' eyes.
The day began with Justin Denison picking up where his testimony left off last week, and was grilled by Apple's legal team on whether the strategy officer had ever asked Samsung designers if they had...
Mobile
Schiller, Forstall, and 'Fight Club': day three of Apple v. Samsung
While the last few days have been filled with theatrics from the Apple v. Samsung legal teams, today we got back to the two sides explaining their cases before the nine-person jury. Phil Schiller was up first, and walked the courtroom through the impetus for the original iPhone in 2004 — "We realized at the time that some phones weren't any good as entertainment devices," he said — as well as the success the smartphone had upon launch. In fact, after a few years the iPhone became so...
Apple
Early iPhone design talks sparked by a Samsung 'fashionphone'
We've seen a number of early iPhone prototypes come out as evidence in the Apple / Samsung trial, but today we got our first glimpse at the very beginning of the iPhone process in 2005, when Apple was considering grafting a phone onto the existing iPod line. We now know that's literally true — early discussions involved putting a ring of number keys around the iPod click wheel. "This may be our answer," said Steve Jobs in an email to Jony Ive.
As it happens, in 2005 Samsung and Bang &...
Apple
Steve Jobs was 'very receptive' to a 7-inch iPad
Although Apple has long dismissed the viability of 7-inch tablets, the company has been talking about a smaller iPad internally for some time — and Steve Jobs himself was "very receptive" to the idea even though he had previously called 7-inch tablets "DOA" on an October 2010 earnings call. That's the word from an email entered into evidence during Scott Forstall's testimony in the ongoing Apple / Samsung trial. In January 2011 Apple VP Eddy Cue forwarded an article that compared the 7-inch...
Scott Forstall testifies: live from the Apple v. Samsung courtroom
Phil Schiller finished up earlier this morning, and now it's time for Apple to call its third witness: Senior Vice President of iOS Scott Forstall. The company has accused Samsung of copying several of the operating system's features, so we're sure he'll have plenty to say. We're in the courtroom covering the trial live, so let's get going (all times in Pacific Time):
11:54 AM Forstall has taken the stand and introduced himself. He's covering his educational background to warm things up.
1...
Phil Schiller takes the stand in the Apple v. Samsung trial
Apple called designer Christopher Stringer to the stand earlier this week in the company's trial against Samsung, and today Cupertino's going to be bringing more witnesses to the stand. We're also expecting to hear a response to the week's legal theatrics.
We just sat down in the courtroom and will be updating live, so let's get to it (timestamps in Pacific Time):
8:42AM: Judge Koh has already reprimanded Samsung. Apparently an individual claiming to be with Samsung came into the courtroom to...
Policy & Law
Judge: Samsung can't use '2001' or UK television show to dispute Apple's iPad patents
We're two drama-filled days into the Apple vs. Samsung trial, and now Judge Lucy Koh has ruled that Samsung won't be able to use several fictional examples of tablet computing to argue against Apple's iPad patents. In an order today, Koh rejected Samsung's arguments that it should be able to introduce footage from 2001: A Space Odyssey and the UK television show Tomorrow People, both of which feature characters using tablet devices, as "prior art": pre-existing creations the would call into...
Android
Apple wants Samsung case dismissed with winning verdict because of leaked evidence
Apple has filed a request over Samsung's decision to release rejected trial evidence to the media, asking Judge Lucy Koh to respond by issuing a verdict that says Apple's patents are valid and Samsung infringed on them. The statement notes that Samsung has been sanctioned several times, most recently for destroying evidence, claiming the company may even welcome a mistrial in order to further its "strategy of delay" and make it more likely jurors would have seen the excluded evidence Samsung...
Policy & Law
Lead Samsung lawyer defends decision to send rejected evidence to media
John Quinn, Samsung's lead counsel in the Apple v. Samsung case, filed a personal declaration this morning confirming that he was the one that authorized the release of a statement to media outlets regarding the Samsung and Apple design documents that had been repeatedly excluded from evidence by Judge Lucy Koh. The judge became noticeably angry when she learned of Samsung's press statements yesterday, while Quinn was away from court, and demanded the lawyer's declaration to explain exactly...
Policy & Law
Nearly 40 iPhone and iPad prototypes revealed in Samsung trial
Today at the Apple vs. Samsung trial, Apple designer Christopher Stringer took to the stand as Apple's first witness. In the course of his testimony about Apple's design process, he showed dozens of rejected iPhone and iPad designs — including some he actually showed in person. They give us yet another look at Apple's design process and reveal a bit about how the company forms its design aesthetic. Some of the newly revealed phones do appear to have more in common with Sony's design...
Policy & Law
Samsung angers judge by sending rejected evidence from Apple trial to the media
The Apple vs. Samsung trial was always destined to be a circus, but Samsung's already causing trouble on the first day of testimony: Judge Lucy Koh is furious that the company sent the press rejected evidence after the court overruled repeated attempts to introduce it at trial.
Samsung has been desperate to tell the jury about its F700 phone — which was in development months before the January 2007 introduction of the iPhone — and internal Apple emails that show the company pursuing a...
Apple designer Christopher Stringer reveals iPhone design process, says 'we've been ripped off'
Apple called its first witness to the stand in the company's case against Samsung, and while Jony Ive hasn't appeared on the witness list, the design department was represented today by industrial designer Christopher Stringer. Questioned by Apple's counsel, Stringer painted a detailed picture of the design process inside Apple. A 17-year veteran of the company, Stringer stated that he'd been involved with every single product the company had released since 1995, due to how closely the design...
Android
Samsung delivers its opening statement, argues that Apple iPhone patents are invalid
Apple delivered its opening statement in the Apple v. Samsung trial this morning, and Samsung followed promptly thereafter, laying out its case that it was already headed in the design direction that the iPhone brought to market in 2007 — and that the utility patents Apple is claiming were infringed may not even be valid in the first place.
Samsung counsel Charles Verhoeven stressed numerous times to the jury that Apple had not told the entire story, and that Samsung was a company that...
Apple's opening statement: Samsung said iPhone was 'easy to copy'
Apple presented its opening statement in the company's trial against Samsung this morning, painting Samsung as an aesthetic thief that took inspiration from Apple rather than innovate on its own — but not before the second day of the trial got off to a rocky start. The 10 jurors for the case were selected just yesterday, but the morning began with one juror already asking to be removed. Stating that her employer wouldn't be paying her while she served, she said she's already suffered panic...
Apple
Apple vs. Samsung jury selected, Apple allowed to reference Steve Jobs in opening statement
It looked more like the scene of an iPhone launch than a trial when Apple and Samsung kicked off their legal battle this morning in San Jose, California. A slow-moving line stretched away from the entrance to the Robert F. Peckham United States Courthouse and Federal Building an hour and a half before things were scheduled to begin, with one court official stating that more than 200 additional visitors were present. As the court worked its way towards selecting a jury, however, it became...
Policy & Law
Apple vs. Samsung: the complete guide to a billion-dollar trial
By Matt Macari and Nilay Patel
After over a year of drama, the patent battle between Apple and Samsung heads to trial in California today. While there’s no doubt both sides will do their best to present theatrical and emotional arguments, in the end the jury will be left with a defined set of intellectual property rights asserted against a specific list of devices — mostly variants of the Samsung Galaxy S, Galaxy S II, and the Galaxy Tab 10.1. (Remember that the Galaxy Nexus and Galaxy S...
