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Motorola Ordered To Recall Android Phones and Tablets In Germany

Posted by Soulskill on from the continuing-to-go-thermonuclear dept.

puddingebola sends word of a German court decision yesterday which found that Google's Motorola Mobility must recall all of its Android tablets and phones that infringe on Apple's patent for "rubber-band" scrolling. From the Guardian: "The dramatic decision, the latest in an escalating war between Apple and the smartphone and set-top box company MMI, follows earlier cases in which Apple had to disable automatic "push" delivery of email to its iPhone and iPads after MMI won a separate patent fight in Germany. The recall will not take effect immediately because Apple will have to request a ban on specific products and provide a €25m (£20m) bond, while MMI can appeal. However, the court indicated that it was unlikely that an appeal against the validity of the patent would succeed. MMI, with Google's backing, is expected to continue the appeal. The court also ruled that MMI owed Apple damages for past infringement."

4 of 190 comments (clear)

  1. George Selden by tepples · · Score: 4, Informative

    To use a car analogy, It's like going back in time 100 years and patenting [...] "automobiles that exhaust fumes to the air"

    Except George Selden patented exactly that.

    1. Re:George Selden by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      The Wright brothers also patented everything they could involving aircraft, including ideas first implemented by Chanute & Lilienthal. As a result, American aviation withered for a quarter of a century until the Wrights were forced to place their patents into a common pool.

  2. Re:Stop supporting APPLE!! by shutdown+-p+now · · Score: 5, Informative

    Google and Motorolla would enforce this patent on Apple if they happened to own it. They already enforced another equally trivial patent on push email, so that Apple devices can't use it in Germany.

    Except that Google and Motorola have only started to enforce their patents against Apple after Apple started to sue every Android manufacturer in sight.

  3. Re:Stop supporting APPLE!! by Paradise+Pete · · Score: 1, Informative

    Saint Google is now taking a page out of Microsoft's playbook.