According to sources at both companies, “Apple, maker of the iPhone, violated two Samsung patents related to mobile-data transfer technologies, the Seoul Central District Court said today. Samsung, the world’s largest mobile phone maker, infringed one Apple patent related to a ‘bounce-back’ touchscreen feature, though the Suwon, South Korea-based company didn’t copy the design of the iPhone, the court said.” Earlier this week in court, jurors sided with Apple, saying that Samsung had purposely infringed four design and three utility patents. The judge awarded Apple $1.05 billion, in which Samsung owes for the infringement. Continue reading for the news report and more information.
In what must be a bitter pill for the Korean company, the jury also said Apple had not infringed any of the five patents on which Samsung had countersued. Regardless of which side won the jury trial, attorneys for both companies indicated during the trial that they were putting evidence on the record for an appeal.
“This is a resounding victory, not for only Apple and its intellectual property portfolio, but also designers and design rights in general. This verdict strengthens strengthens Apple’s design identity, which has arguably has been watered down as each new Apple-like device hit the market,” said attorney Christopher Carani, chairman of the American Bar Association’s design rights committee.
