It has been more than a day since The Verdict and Apple is already hitting high on stocks after their Big Win. We have been quite updating with the stories and here’s a quick glance on what, actually, the drama was all about! Apple vs Samsung- the patent trial, the verdict and the story behind!
So, what was the trial all about?
The two giants of the mobile world, Apple.Inc and Samsung. Co. Ltd, have been clashing for over a long time from early last year across different countries, and this big patent trial is about the design patents of smartphones and tablets. Apple litigated against Samsung in patent infringements on the design of iPhone and iPad. Samsung, in turn, counter-sued Apple with defensive non-infringement statements and filed federal complaints alleging that Apple infringed Samsung’s patents on mobile communication technologies.
Here’s an account on the arguments of the two sides:
Apple filed a 66-page brief stating that Samsung violated the intellectual property of Apple by copying designs of iDevices. For instance, Samsung’s Galaxy S and Galaxy Tabs closely resemble the design of iPhone and iPad respectively.
From their brief, Apple said Samsung’s smartphone container icons were “too iPhone-like” and were “strongly associated with the iPhone UI” and that “This evidence involves the products that Apple has accused of infringing its design patents and violating its trade dress rights, including the Galaxy S phone (sold in the U.S. as the “Vibrant” and other names), the Galaxy Tab 10.1, and the icon containers that Samsung used on its smartphones.”
Apple also stated Samsung “willfully” copied Apple designs including the iPhone’s iconography, its “pinch-and-zoom” feature, the “bounce-back” effect in on-screen scrolling and the double-tap zoom.
With those and many other legal patent infringement cases filed by Apple, Samsung countered with their brief saying “Indeed, Apple, which sold its first iPhone nearly twenty years after Samsung started developing mobile phone technology, could not have sold a single iPhone without the benefit of Samsung‘s patented technology. Even as Apple has carried out a coordinated campaign of dragging Samsung‘s name through the mud in this lawsuit and in the media, it has used Samsung‘s patented technology while flatly refusing to pay for its use.”
Samsung also claimed that , as a part of “natural evolution”, they had used the public domain designs that Apple “borrowed from other competitors”. Also stated the “Sony-like” design of the iPhone.
Samsung also alleged that Apple themselves admit that they are not the ‘developing ones’ but the ‘commercialising ones’.
The Verdict:
Three weeks after filing of the case at the San Jose Court, California,the Jury of the patent trial, validated almost all of Apple’s claims against Samsung. The affected Samsung devices including Galaxy S, Galaxy S II, Nexus, Vibrant, etc were found to be infringing Apple’s design patents of “bounce-and-back”, iconography design, double-tap zoom and pinch-to-zoom features. The future of these devices is not known yet. With that, Apple was awarded $1.409 billion as compensation for loses.
The jury also rejected Samsung’s other claims against Apple and advised them to “make their own phones”
After their loss in the historic battle, Samsung stated the decision to be a “loss for American consumers” rather than a win for Apple.
“Today’s verdict should not be viewed as a win for Apple, but as a loss for the American consumer. It will lead to fewer choices, less innovation, and potentially higher prices. It is unfortunate that patent law can be manipulated to give one company a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners, or technology that is being improved every day by Samsung and other companies. Consumers have the right to choices, and they know what they are buying when they purchase Samsung products. This is not the final word in this case or in battles being waged in courts and tribunals around the world, some of which have already rejected many of Apple’s claims. Samsung will continue to innovate and offer choices for the consumer.”
And from the winners’ side, Apple’s spokeswomen Katie Cotton said
“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 presented during the trial showed that Samsung’s copying went far deeper than even we knew. The lawsuits between Apple and Samsung were about much more than patents or money. They were about values. At Apple, we value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth. We make these products to delight our customers, not for our competitors to flagrantly copy. We applaud the court for finding Samsung’s behavior willful and for sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn’t right.”
The Aftermath?
Now that answers have been made from the jury’s side, many questions are still to be answered about the aftermath of this battle.
How much is this verdict going to affect Samsung? Well, clearly, a pretty much! Will Samsung retrace the original path of not-so-Apple-like designs or continue to follow its “natural evolution”? What will be the future of Samsung market?
Or, is the verdict truly doing good for Apple? Apple, thewinners, are hitting the stocks high, yes. But then, have not they just proved Samsung products are “same as” the iDevices? On a consumer point of view, that is a great news..er, for Samsung? With an Apple-ish product and an un-Apple-ish cost, why bother about the patents and violations?
But yes, the battle is not over yet. Reports say Samsung will appeal to Judge Lucy Koh on rulings lost and proceed further. The scheduled court on September 20 will decide the fate of the infringed Samsung items and that of the future mobile technoworld!