Apple wins important law suit at federal level

Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) has won $ 506.2 million in patent damages against Optis Wireless Technology. A federal judge dismissed the patent damages award on the grounds that Apple was able to argue that Optis Wireless, which is the patent owner, is demanding unfair license fees. However, the judge did not reject the liability statement. It is important to note that Optis and its partners in the lawsuit, Unwired Planet LLC and PanOptis Patent Management, alleged that the iPhone maker's tablets, watches, and smartphones that use the LTE cellular standard used their patented technology. Judge Rodney Gilstrap said the jury should have been allowed to consider the consistency of the royalty claim in terms of whether standard essential patents should be licensed on reasonable, fair and non-discriminatory terms. Interestingly, the patent trial took place in August and was one of the few trials held at the height of the pandemic. It was part of the rare judgments made in Texas that resulted in collective damages claims of $ 3.7 billion against tech giants like Apple and Intel Corp (NASDAQ: INTC). In addition, the iPhone maker was hit with $ 502.8 million in damages in the decade-long legal battery related to security communications technology and $ 308.5 million in another lawsuit related to digital rights management. The Optis case concerns a technology that the company says is essential for the implementation of the 4G communication standard. For decades there have been disputes in the tech industry about the evaluation of patents on "standard-essential technology". This became imperative after the advent of wireless inventions built into consumer products such as automobiles and home appliances. According to Apple, the entire process in the Optis lawsuit was distorted because the jury was not informed of the patent owner's licensing requirements. The company said the issue was not discussed in front of the jury as Optis had only asked the judge to determine if it complied with FRAND terms. Typically, in the manufacture of equipment, companies band together and agree to license patents under FRAND terms.