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Samsung, Apple Agree To Try Mediation In Patent Disputes
An anonymous reader writes "The smartphone and tablet rivals will work with a mediator in an effort to settle their patent disputes in advance of a second trial on the issues scheduled for this spring, according to Bloomberg News. The agreement, filed in federal court in San Jose today, was in response to U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh's request in November that both sides submit a settlement discussion proposal before trial. Senior legal executives at the companies met Jan. 6 to discuss 'settlement opportunities,' according to the proposal. The companies agreed to retain a mediator 'who has experience mediating high profile disputes,' according to the filing, which doesn't name the person. The chief executive officers and three to four company lawyers, but no outside lawyers, will attend the mediation before Feb. 19, according to the filing."
A very rich child, with the government in their pocket. Why would they discontinue their behaviour?
All this is, for apple is a way to look like they are trying to do things in good faith. That is all this comes down to, they will do everything they can to stone wall things to make sure they go no where but only to a point to make it look like they were willing to try to make a deal.
Why is there never any discussion about whether those patents are even valid in the first place?
Why not just *try* to hide your naked fanboism, just a little? People might take you more seriously and not dismiss you as a troll or unpaid Apple shill.
The Samsung IC business relationship between these two is an order of magnitude more important than any lost sales from competition. Whether or not they settle on silly frilly patent disputes will not change that fact one iota.
This is hardly news. Mediation is typically always strongly recommended by the judge prior to trial. Either party refusing to attend would make them look bad in the judge's eyes. So whether or not they actually think it is worthwhile, they both attend. And then there is no resolution. And then the trial goes ahead as planned.
There's a world of difference between mediation and binding arbitration. Regardless, any judge is supposed to be on the lookout for opportunities for settlements in civil actions, regardless the likelihood of appeals process.
Am I the only one who read "Samsung, Apple Agree to Try Medication in Patent Disputes"?
It makes sense, perhaps with medication they can control their patent madness. It is certainly sick.
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Does anyone on Slashdot have access to some older engineering journals on touchscreens? I was under the impression that the Taipei geeks were fiddling with the touchpad and display screen markets, out of their niche in ATM touchscreen displays (which wealthy nations ignored), and that when they were contracted by Apple to make Ipads they said "hey, check this out, we put a screen on it. And you can attach at telephone". And Apple said "heck yah make that" but nothing kept Samsung from doing the same. But that's a general recollection, I don't want to be cited as a source.
But gee, I can spot a lot of lawyer history-rewrites on the internet. I just spent 10-15 minutes trying to track down the history of the development of "touchscreen" as it was attached to phones and tablets, and it's getting really hard to actually do any research on the web. The stakes in the legal patent claims seem to fan the rewriting of history on wikipedia and About.com (both with versions that I know aren't right, even if I'm not sure what IS right).
I'm not comfortable enough just from reading Digitimes for 12 years to be an expert in this, but when you read display news for 12 years you can at least spot bullshit in patent claims and wikipedia articles that are years out of sync. Anyone here have any real scoop on this that's not been rewritten by the Anglican Church? It's like all the "pagan" inventions are being turned into Christian patents.
Gently reply
So then you agree with this case as well?
Apple pays $60 million to settle China iPad trademark dispute
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/07/02/us-apple-china-idUSBRE86104320120702 [reuters.com]
Well yeah, why not? Apple wanted to sell a product called iPad in a country where another company already had a trademark on the name. That company reached a court-mediated settlement under which Apple agreed to pay that company 60 million dollars for the right to use the name "iPad" in the region where the name was already trademarked.
What's there to disagree with?
Apple gets sued pretty frequently in US courts. More than pretty frequently, in fact. That tends to happen when you have products, have a lot of cash on hand, and don't, in fact, have a wall of invulnerability. I doubt they get significantly more help from the US government than any other Fortune 500 company.
Court documents revealed that Apple had offered to licence its patents to Samsung - allowing Samsung to produce perfectly-legal Apple-licenced phones and tablets - for $30 per phone and $40 per tablet.
Samsung rejected the offer.
Right, and much more significant patents are typically licensed at rates like $4-5/device.
A presidential pardon is pretty unusual.
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