Nokia Sues Apple, Claims Patent Infringement in iPhone and Other Devices (marketwatch.com)

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Nokia Sues Apple, Claims Patent Infringement in iPhone and Other Devices (marketwatch.com)

Posted by msmash on Wednesday December 21, 2016 @08:00AM from the patent-war dept.

Nokia today announced a number of patent infringement complaints against Apple in Europe and the U.S. courts. There are 32 patents in total that Nokia claims Apple infringed, covering technologies such as display, user interface, software, antenna, chipsets and video coding. From a report on MarketWatch: Nokia said Apple agreed to license a few of Nokia Technologies' patents in 2011, but has declined offers by Nokia since then to license other patents whose inventions have been used in Apple mobile devices, including the iPhone and iPad, and the Mac. The lawsuits, filed in a Munich, Germany, regional court and a district court in Texas, cover technologies such as display, user interface, software, antenna, chipsets and video coding. Nokia said it's in the process of filing further actions in other jurisdictions as well. "After several years of negotiations trying to reach agreement to cover Apple's use of these patents, we are now taking action to defend our rights," said Ilkka Rahnasto, head of patent business at Nokia.

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Grief stage 6 by tripleevenfall · 2016-12-21 08:02 · Score: 3, Insightful

Grief stage 6... patent trolling.
1. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:10 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Apple mainly has design patents for things like swipe bounce and round corners. Plus they still have to go through stages 1-5.
  Apple is a notorious technical patent thief who sued another company for design patent thievery and is now being sued for technical patent thievery. What's that you say? It's the smell of deliciously stewed Karma.
2. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:27 · Score: 0
  
  Karma is only felt when someone has something to lose. Apple won't even feel this at all. Even if they are demanded to pay Nokia $100s of millions (which they won't be), it's a drop in the bucket in their coffers.
  There is no Karma for Apple.
3. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:44 · Score: 1
  
  LOL apple doesn't need any buckets to pay their lost lawsuits, that's what the sheep are for; a slight increase in the price of dongle should do it.
4. Re:Grief stage 6 by gravewax · 2016-12-21 09:17 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  It isn't patent trolling when you actually did invent the stuff, used it and tried to license it.
5. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:19 · Score: 1
  
  seems more a textbook case of the CORRECT use and defence of patents. This is the actual company that invented many of the items in phones today even if they are a shadow of their former self and from the article they tried to do the right thing with Apple for years but as usual apple are just arseholes.
6. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:18 · Score: 0
  
  What is when you tell people they can use it for a flat rate of x per user and then after it becomes the standard you sell it to another company you have influence over so they can jack up the rate and collect more?
7. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:24 · Score: 0
  
  not sure, but it isn't patent trolling. Patent trolling is purchasing dead companies and keeping the patents quiet until a company is successful then enforcing the patents.
8. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:32 · Score: 0
  
  the risk of doing business when you choose to steal and use patented tech without first getting licensing agreements in place.
9. Re:Grief stage 6 by sycodon · 2016-12-21 10:38 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  Software and interface patents just need to die.
  Billions spent and still computers suck.
  
  --
  When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
10. Re: Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 11:27 · Score: 0
  
  Oops, i was looking for the +1 button ;)
11. Re:Grief stage 6 by Luthair · 2016-12-21 12:49 · Score: 1
  
  Nice story you made up, too bad it doesn't reflect reality. Standards patents are licensed under FRAND terms.
12. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 17:17 · Score: 1
  
  Nokia has literally invented most of the modern mobile network infrastructure and cornerstone technology of modern mobile phones. They have spent an insane amount of money over the years to come up with this stuff, and they have also licensed it to numerous mobile network and phone manufacturing companies. They're not using the patents to stifle competition, but they do want compensation for the risks they took when they spent that money into coming up with new technology.
  You need to look up the correct definition of patent trolling before you throw such ludicrous statements around.
13. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 19:08 · Score: 0
  
  same as what you a chicken crossing the road. A completelyfucking unrelated topic.
14. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 19:45 · Score: 0
  
  Karma is only felt when someone has something to lose. Apple won't even feel this at all. Even if they are demanded to pay Nokia $100s of millions (which they won't be), it's a drop in the bucket in their coffers.
  There is no Karma for Apple.
  If Nokia were to win then the big deal isn't really what they would get for past infringement.
  Apple can't go on selling new devices that violates a patent while they have a court case against them that says they can't because then Nokia can just keep suing them for every new violation.
  Any form of licensing deal might very well be of the $ per device sold variety or simply a cross-licensing deal which could be convenient if Nokia intends to start making new phones, but since Apple were kinda late to the game they don't have much patents on the necessary parts and if Nokia decides to go for Android and not make their own GUI they might not need to license anything from Apply anyway.
15. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-22 02:11 · Score: 0
  
  And Nokia's phones have been so out of date Apple probably won't have any grounds for a counter suit.
16. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-22 06:18 · Score: 0
  
  Apple mainly has design patents for things like swipe bounce and round corners.
  You're completely full of shit. Just a cursory glance at the USPTO Patent database shows 14,478 patents filed with Apple as the assignee since 1978, most of which have absolutely nothing to do with squircles and UX elements. I'd imagine that they could dig into that large portfolio and find a number of infringements on Nokia's product lineup...if Nokia had a lineup worth mentioning.
  Here's a random sample of 50 of them, just look at all those design patents! You should probably just refrain from commenting on subjects you obviously know nothing about.
  PAT. NO. Title
  451 D769,148 Full-Text Planter
  452 D769,021 Full-Text Display structure
  453 9,474,156 Full-Text Interposer connectors with alignment features
  454 9,474,083 Full-Text Co-scheduling based on steering vector orthogonality
  455 9,474,082 Full-Text Method and apparatus for co-scheduling transmissions in a wireless network
  456 9,474,029 Full-Text Methods and apparatus for improving power consumption in a wireless network
  457 9,473,943 Full-Text Methods and apparatus for managing data within a secure element
  458 9,473,912 Full-Text SMS proxying
  459 9,473,883 Full-Text Location service authorization and indication
  460 9,473,780 Full-Text Video transmission using content-based frame search
  461 9,473,778 Full-Text Skip thresholding in pipelined video encoders
  462 9,473,706 Full-Text Image sensor flicker detection
  463 9,473,609 Full-Text Button integration for an electronic device
  464 9,473,574 Full-Text Synchronization of devices in a peer-to-peer network environment
  465 9,473,562 Full-Text Mediated data exchange for sandboxed applications
  466 9,473,499 Full-Text Federated role provisioning
  467 9,473,340 Full-Text Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing polar transmitter
  468 9,473,223 Full-Text Methods for optimal collaborative MIMO-SDMA
  469 9,473,176 Full-Text Implementation of log and inverse operation in a Galois Field
  470 9,473,032 Full-Text Power converter system with synchronous rectifier output stage and reduced no-load power consumption
  471 9,472,917 Full-Text Internal component arrangement within a housing
  472 9,472,605 Full-Text Organic light-emitting diode display with enhanced aperture ratio
  473 9,472,360 Full-Text Curable foam shims for buttons of electronic devices
  474 9,472,285 Full-Text Test partitioning for a non-volatile memory
  475 9,472,243 Full-Text Systems and methods for stacked semiconductor memory devices
  476 9,472,169 Full-Text Coordinate based QoS escalation
  477 9,472,168 Full-Text Display pipe statistics calculation for video encoder
  478 9,472,158 Full-Text Image data correction for VCOM error
  479 9,472,131 Full-Text Testing of integrated circuit to substrate joints
  480 9,471,955 Full-Text Multiple display pipelines driving a divided display
  481 9,471,764 Full-Text Electronic device switchable to a user-interface unlocked mode based upon spoof detection and related methods
  482 9,471,688 Full-Text Personalized targeting of media stations
  483 9,471,599 Full-Text Dynamic location search suggestions based on travel itineraries
  484 9,471,587 Full-Text Remote enumeration of a directory
  485 9,471,560 Full-Text Autocorrecting language input for virtual keyboards
  486 9,471,401 Full-Text Parallel runtime execution on multiple processors
  487 9,471,378 Full-Text Adaptive resource management of a data processing system
  488 9,471,324 Full-Text Concurrent execution of heterogeneous vector instructions
  489 9,471,322 Full-Text Earl
17. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-22 07:55 · Score: 0
  
  Wow apple owns the patent on
  "495 D768,724 Full-Text Electronic device" that is not vague at all. Why hasnt apple started suing all Electronic Device makers?
18. Re:Grief stage 6 by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-26 22:13 · Score: 0
  
  Nokia - the BIGGEST mobile and fixed line networks infrastructure in the World ... stop being fixated about phones, which to be honest are still stuck in 2008
Cheaper by B00KER · 2016-12-21 08:03 · Score: 0

It's still cheaper to settle the lawsuits than to follow the copyright laws in the first time.
1. Re: Cheaper by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:36 · Score: 0
  
  But how about patent laws ;)
Karma by sconeu · 2016-12-21 08:04 · Score: 0

Karma is a bitch, isn't it, Apple?

--
General Relativity: Space-time tells matter where to go; Matter tells space-time what shape to be.
1. Re:Karma by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:14 · Score: 0
  
  Here, oh angry one, have a Snickers.
2. Re:Karma by aaarrrgggh · 2016-12-21 08:21 · Score: 1
  
  Actually, with their losses in high courts around the world I would think their risk is pretty low. You can't on one hand say the penalties are not linked to all the profits and value tiny pieces of the phone highly on the other.
3. Re:Karma by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:40 · Score: 0
  
  The whole reason Apple got patent-happy was because they got sued by Creative years ago.
4. Re:Karma by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:42 · Score: 0
  
  Was it not for a reason?
5. Re: Karma by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 11:17 · Score: 0
  
  Learn what "angry" means, butt hurt douche.
Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:05 · Score: 2, Interesting

Now reduced to patent troll tears. I wonder if this is just a Microsoft proxy war. I guess BB will be the next company to do nothing but sue for patent infringement.
If you can, do. If you can't, teach. If you can't teach, create a patent holding company.
1. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:53 · Score: 0
  
  Like Rockstar Consortium ? Charter member apple?
2. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:17 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  It's SCO all over again.
3. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:23 · Score: 0
  
  Why, did Nokia buy the patents? Or did Nokia actually do research?
4. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by gravewax · 2016-12-21 09:37 · Score: 2
  
  how is this in any way similar to SCO? Nokia actually invented the stuff and patented and even licensed it out. Unless you are comparing Apple to SCO in that they are both a bunch of money grubbing pricks?
5. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by cdrudge · 2016-12-21 09:55 · Score: 2
  
  I wonder if this is just a Microsoft proxy war.
  Not likely since this is Nokia Corp, what was left after Microsoft acquired Nokia's mobile handset business. Nokia Corp kept the patents to license to other manufacturers as part of the Microsoft deal.
6. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:55 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  Are you aware that Apple are infringing on many patents, genuine patents and real innovations as opposed to their own "patents" of sliding a button to the side etc.? They rely on their size to get away with it, but nevertheless, they are infringing on patents.
  Companies like Ericsson and Nokia "do" and "teach" like you say, while companies like Apple just sue to get their way.
7. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:21 · Score: 0
  
  Blackberry?
  Best Buy?
  BB King?
8. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:33 · Score: 1
  
  You know, there is a very large possibility that Nokia actually invented these things, and that the patents are entirely valid? That's not generally something you could say about "patent trolls".
  Either way, the possibility that Apple actually invented any of it is nil, so presumably they own someone at least.
9. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Luthair · 2016-12-21 12:50 · Score: 1
  
  They invented round corners, don't forget about those.
10. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 16:24 · Score: 0
  
  The company that invented the stuff is long dead. Modern Nokia is a shell company that does patent trolling at the bidding of Microsoft, just like SCO did.
11. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by gravewax · 2016-12-21 17:06 · Score: 1
  
  Bullshit, Nokia only sold off one part of the company, they are not in any way shape or form just a shell company.
12. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 17:40 · Score: 0
  
  might want to educate yourself before talking out of your arse. http://www.nokia.com/en_int
13. Re:Once the largest cell phone company by jbrown.za · 2016-12-21 22:02 · Score: 1
  
  Does a shell company employee over 50,000 people, generated over Euro 20 Billion in revenue and have a market cap of around $27 billion USD?
  Nokia is a 150 year old company. They have been through many transformations from pulp and forestry to rubber, power generation, cable production and telecommunications.
  Every phone needs a network to connect to a network. AT&T, Vodafone, Telefonica etc. all invest huge amounts of capital in building these networks. Nokia supplies the core technologies to the phone network operators. Even when they were known primarily for their handsets they were already supplying network equipment.
They must get their tech news from Slashdot. by SeaFox · 2016-12-21 08:11 · Score: 0, Flamebait

Thank goodness someone told Nokia about this hip new iPhone device so they could take action before years went by or something.
1. Re:They must get their tech news from Slashdot. by The+Grim+Reefer · 2016-12-21 08:19 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  Thank goodness someone told Nokia about this hip new iPhone device so they could take action before years went by or something.
  I thought the same thing, until I read the last sentence of TFS:
  
  "After several years of negotiations trying to reach agreement to cover Apple's use of these patents, we are now taking action to defend our rights," said Ilkka Rahnasto, head of patent business at Nokia.
  
  It sounds like they tried to avoid going to court for several years. At least that' what I got out of TFS.
2. Re:They must get their tech news from Slashdot. by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 11:01 · Score: 0
  
  Geeze is only the article mentioned they had been in negotiation with apple for years trying to appropriately license instead of litigate.... oh wait it is, try reading the fucking article before commenting.
3. Re:They must get their tech news from Slashdot. by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 12:12 · Score: 0
  
  It sounds like they tried to avoid going to court for several years. At least that' what I got out of TFS.
  That's the interesting thing about humans - we all interpret things differently. For example I interpreted Nokia's statement to be more of a need to secure funds after failing so badly in the modern mobile sector, that litigation is perhaps the only chance of keeping them alive.
4. Re: They must get their tech news from Slashdot. by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 15:14 · Score: 0
  
  That may be the case. What evidence can you point to that supports this claim other than vague hand waving about Apple being rich and Nokia being poor?
5. Re:They must get their tech news from Slashdot. by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 21:01 · Score: 1
  
  How is Nokia failing badly in the modern mobile sector? Their market share is stable and they make a healthy profit. They simply don't want Apple to use technologies developed by Nokia without fair compensation. Patents may be a dubious concept and they may be abused often, but Nokia demanding royalties from Apple in this case is a textbook case of how they are supposed to work.
This is new by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:29 · Score: 1

A patent lawsuit in Texas!
Why, I bet that patent was made in New York City!
1. Re:This is new by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 08:49 · Score: 0
  
  NEW YORK CITY?!?!
2. Re:This is new by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:03 · Score: 0
  
  ...get a rope
3. Re:This is new by halivar · 2016-12-21 09:30 · Score: 1
  
  Downmods are too young to remember this classic 90's Pace Picante ad reference.
4. Re:This is new by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 19:57 · Score: 0
  
  You don't go after an American company in American courts.
  If you try the court might decide to not handle your paperwork correctly and then blame you for it.
declined "offers" ? by Black+Parrot · 2016-12-21 08:36 · Score: 2, Insightful

That's the drill: when you're trying to shake someone down, you call it an 'offer'.

--
Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
1. Re:declined "offers" ? by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:12 · Score: 0
  
  Make them an "offer" they can't refuse.
2. Re:declined "offers" ? by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:46 · Score: 0
  
  When you steal other peoples patented tech and refuse to license you deserve what you get, this isn't a patent troll. This is a company defending themselves against thieves.
3. Re:declined "offers" ? by thegarbz · 2016-12-21 09:54 · Score: 1
  
  That's the drill: when you're trying to shake someone down, you call it an 'offer'.
  That shows how little you know about the mobile phone industry. This isn't a shakedown, this is just another day in the procurement department of a mobile company.
4. Re:declined "offers" ? by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 11:21 · Score: 0
  
  That's the drill: when you're trying to shake someone down, you call it an 'offer'.
  It's not really an offer you can't refuse until it is accompanied by a severed horse head.
Hwo did Apple ... by PPH · 2016-12-21 09:06 · Score: 1

... infringe on patents held by a Finnish bicycle tire manufacturer?

--
Have gnu, will travel.
1. Re:Hwo did Apple ... by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 09:32 · Score: 0
  
  That was probably a joke, but it's not just a coinsident:
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia
  "In 1987, Finnish Cable Works discontinued production of cables at its Helsinki factory, effectively ending the sub-company. Nokian Tyres (Nokian Renkaat), a tyre producer that was originally formed as a division of Finnish Rubber Works in 1932, split away from Nokia Corporation in 1988. Two years later in 1990, Finnish Rubber Works followed suit. This allowed Nokia Corporation to solely focus on communications."
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokian_Tyres
2. Re:Hwo did Apple ... by cdrudge · 2016-12-21 09:50 · Score: 2
  
  The tire manufacturer has a patent on rounded corners obviously.
3. Re:Hwo did Apple ... by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:09 · Score: 0
  
  and Nintendo was originally a playing card company. That doesnt mean apple would not steal from them.
4. Re:Hwo did Apple ... by vux984 · 2016-12-21 11:20 · Score: 1
  
  I assume the same way Samsung infringed on Apple's patents:
  http://static5.gamespot.com/up...
5. Re:Hwo did Apple ... by PPH · 2016-12-21 13:26 · Score: 1
  
  That was probably a joke,
  Yes.
  
  This allowed Nokia Corporation to solely focus on communications.
  The way that business is going, they should have stuck with tires (that's the implied punch line).
  
  --
  Have gnu, will travel.
6. Re:Hwo did Apple ... by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 20:06 · Score: 0
  
  Infringe, not steal.
  Well, I wouldn't rule out Apple stealing from Nintendo or grandmas, but you get the idea.
7. Re:Hwo did Apple ... by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-23 01:15 · Score: 0
  
  No, they make Wellington boots.
  http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3125/3090696478_f3a2a268f0_z.jpg
A District Court in Texas by Volfied · 2016-12-21 09:21 · Score: 4, Insightful

A District Court in Texas, eh? I wonder which one...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
New more appropriate name for Nokia by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:26 · Score: 0

Scokia. Only this time around we know where the money for the bullshit law suits is coming from.
Prediction by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 10:45 · Score: 0

Nokia will be the #1 smartphone retailer in the world in 5 years.
Alright Nokia is BACK! by Sla$hPot · 2016-12-21 10:55 · Score: 0

Can't way till May 2017 Hehe LOL
Maybe by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 11:41 · Score: 0

buying remaining Nokia would be cheaper?
1. Re:Maybe by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-21 21:24 · Score: 0
  
  I doubt it. I also don't think Apple wants to enter the mobile network business.
2. Re:Maybe by Anonymous Coward · 2016-12-22 02:04 · Score: 0
  
  or the computer business
FRAND by mveloso · 2016-12-21 14:54 · Score: 1

It's all about the FRAND.
How do you calculate FRAND when there are only two or three companies left?
1. Re:FRAND by mveloso · 2016-12-22 12:15 · Score: 1
  
  Why can't we be FRANDs? Why can't we be FRANDs?
The *definition* of patent trolling by Uberbah · 2016-12-22 15:47 · Score: 1

It isn't patent trolling when you actually did invent the stuff, used it and tried to license it.
It is when you produce nothing, design nothing, research nothing - all you do is send out the lawyers to collect on designs you created long ago, when you were a real company.
echnologies by Kasem · 2016-12-23 00:40 · Score: 1

https://goo.gl/Ba6q7 oIn minutes, you’ll get a personalized report detailing any problems found, plus a list of recommended fixes.