Shane Cole
Global electronics heavyweights Apple and Samsung are said to have renewed efforts to peacefully resolve their years-long legal battle over Samsung's infringement on Apple patents before the parties head back to court next year.
The talks do not yet include Apple CEO Tim Cook or Samsung mobile chief Shin Jong-kyun but are progressing, according to the Korea Times. Apple reportedly wants more than $30 per device from Samsung, while the Korean conglomerate prefers a patent cross-licensing agreement that would grant access to Apple's deep portfolio of design and technical patents.
After Apple's landmark victory in a case that resulted in damage awards of nearly $900 million, the two companies are set to meet in U.S. Federal Court again in March, and presiding Judge Lucy Koh has urged both sides to come to an agreement before that trial begins. Samsung believes Apple's current request is "too much," according to the paper, but Apple is said to be flexible in its demands.
An official at Korea's Fair Trade Commission told the Times that "as far as I know, the companies recently resumed working-level discussions toward the signing of a potential deal. They are in the process of narrowing differences over royalty payments."
Apple and Samsung have been attempting to settle their differences and end their extensive worldwide legal battle for nearly two years. Cook has expressed a preference for resolving the disputes amicably, saying that he has "always hated litigation" and that "if we could get to some kind of arrangement where we could be assured that [a guarantee against future patent infringement is] the case, I highly prefer to settle versus battle."
Last year, Apple and Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC settled their own patent dispute with a 10-year licensing agreement said to cover all current and future patents. "We are glad to have reached a settlement with HTC. We will continue to stay laser focused on product innovation," Cook said then in a succinct statement.
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23 Comments
Samsung gets the tar beaten out of it in multiple countries (including South Korea), they've now spent hundreds of millions in court only to owe Apple almost a cool billion, Apple is renewing motions to ban their products, and now they want to negotiate again? WHAT A TWIST!
$30 seems reasonable. What design patents does Sammy have that Apple wants? Oh maybe they mean Sammy's copy machine.
$30 seems reasonable. What design patents does Sammy have that Apple wants? Oh maybe they mean Sammy's copy machine.
As of January this year, Samsung owned the most US patents of any company (approximately 40,000), and they've come second on the yearly list for number of US patents registered every year since 2006. Apple owned about 6,500 at the start of the year. It sounds like quantity over quality, but in spite of that I'd be very surprised if they didn't have anything that was directly or tangentially of interest to Apple, particularly with regard to potential upcoming Apple TV or iWatch projects.
http://www.iam-magazine.com/blog/detail.aspx?g=8820aab8-dde9-4bfa-ae77-8a5faed14220
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_top_United_States_patent_recipients
Samsung gets the tar beaten out of it in multiple countries (including South Korea), they've now spent hundreds of millions in court only to owe Apple almost a cool billion, Apple is renewing motions to ban their products, and now they want to negotiate again? WHAT A TWIST!
Apple are interested in negotiating too. Samsung paying license fees is easier for everyone, even Apple. Litigation has risks (losing the case, appeals, time-consuming, counter-suits), doesn't really punish the companies involved and is an expensive pain in the ass for everyone concerned. It's not surprising Apple would prefer to license.
Not sure of the timing but the lawsuit may pre-date Google's purchase of a small little company called.....Motorolla. Which has alot of intellectual property on a little invention called the CELL Phone.... So if you want that music player to work like a cell phone, they best get their acts together. What was the first thing Google did after buying Motorola.?... they gave some patents to Samsung. So you apple apparatchiks better watch what you wish for. The IPod may be coming back as highest tech feature in your iPhone5...6 and 7....
... Samsung owned the most US patents of any company (approximately 40,000) ... Apple owned about 6,500 at the start of the year. It sounds like quantity over quality, but in spite of that I'd be very surprised if they didn't have anything that was directly or tangentially of interest to Apple, particularly with regard to potential upcoming Apple TV or iWatch projects.
That is correct, most of Samsung's patents are related to manufacturing equipment and processes which are of no use to Apple.