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US Judge Orders Apple To Share HTC Deal Details With Samsung

Posted by timothy on from the mandatory-transparency dept.

another random user writes with this news from the BBC: "A U.S. judge has ordered Apple to disclose details of its patent-sharing deal with HTC to its rival, Samsung. Apple and HTC signed a 10-year licence agreement earlier this month, but did not make the details public. Samsung, which is also involved in various patent disputes with Apple, asked the courts to tell Apple to furnish the information. It said it was 'almost certain' the deal covered some of the patents at the centre of its dispute with Apple. The court ordered Apple to produce a full copy of the settlement agreement 'without delay,' subject to an 'attorneys' eyes only' designation, meaning it will not be made public."

5 of 106 comments (clear)

  1. Apple shot themselves in the foot... by dryriver · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ... when, instead of competing fairly and squarely with Samsung, they decided to drag Samsung's Galaxy products through the courts and get their sales banned in several different territories, including several European countries. Samsung's products are well priced, well designed, well manufactured and ooze a sense of "quality" overall, while Apple is more of an "electronics fashion brand" in its marketing approach, catering to i-fanboys and i-fangirls who'll buy anyhing branded "Apple". ------ Face it, Apple: You cannot compete with a behemoth like Samsung by trying to twist the courts/the law to your advantage. Put some proper innovation on the market before Samsung, which makes seriously good products, rolls right over you... Good luck to you, because Samsung are seriously good at product design...

    --
    Why did the chicken cross the road? Because Elon Musk put an AI chip in its head.
    1. Re:Apple shot themselves in the foot... by fredprado · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Nope. Acknowledging the quality of Apple's products does not make you a fanboy. Defending Apple's legal practices and bully approach regarding their distributors, competitors and customers does, though, especially when you are directly and negatively affected by it..

  2. Look who works for Apple! by Freshly+Exhumed · · Score: 5, Funny

    Truth is stranger than fiction...

    http://imgur.com/gallery/Swtc9

    --
    I deny that I have not avoided attaining the opposite of that which I do not want.
  3. Re:So... What if what Samsung claims is true? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Apple claims that patents in question are so valuable, that you can not price them in money. Therefore (according to Apple), Samsung products should be banned from the market. Samsung wants to prove that Apple sold those patents to HTC and therefore they have monetary price. If they have a price, Samsung products should not be banned. Even if the product is found to be infringing, Samsung would have to pay money instead of having banned product.

  4. Re:So... What if what Samsung claims is true? by vux984 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Why would it matter to Samsung if the deal between Apple and HTC concerns some patents that are in dispute?

    Apple has alleged that Samsung has caused them 'irreparable harm' by violating their patents, and has requested (and in somes cases gotten) injunctions against Samsung products in several cases now.

    Samsungs counter argument is essentially:

    (disputed assumption 1) Assuming your patents are valid, and (disputed assumption 2) Assuming we infringed those patents, then: its still not irreparable harm. Apple settled with HTC on those same patents which suggests that infringing those patents isn't irreparable, and that money can 'repair' the harm after all, and that therefore an injunction isn't needed.

    Of course its all moot if Samsung is able to get assumption 1 or 2 invalidated, but they're fighting this case at every level.