Apple has announced
that they have filed a countersuit against Nokia claiming Nokia has infringed on 13 different patents held by Apple related to wireless communications.
“Other companies must compete with us by inventing their own technologies, not just by stealing ours,” said Bruce Sewell, Apple’s General Counsel and senior vice president.
This development comes two months after Nokia sued Apple over wireless technology patents held by Nokia. The company claimed Apple had been infringing their patents since the iPhone’s introduction in 2007. Apple in turn said they would “vigorously” defend itself against such claims.
Additionally, Digital Daily reports that Apple is accusing Nokia of demanding exorbitant licensing terms, including giving Nokia access to Apple-owned intellectual property.
Through the present suit, Nokia has asserted unfounded claims of infringement and breached licensing commitments it made to license on F/RAND [Fair, Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory] terms all patents that it claimed were necessary for a party to practice standards. Nokia has also violated those licensing commitments by demanding unjustifiable royalties and reciprocal licenses to Apple’s patents covering Apple’s pioneering technology — patents unrelated to any industry standard. This attempt by Nokia to leverage patents previously pledged to industry standards is an effort to free ride on the commercial success of Apple’s innovative iPhone while avoiding liability for copying the iPhone and infringing Apple’s patents.
Apple claims that none of Nokia’s patents in their suit are “essential” to wireless standards, which Nokia has claimed. If the court rules in favor of Nokia, Apple should still be granted F/RAND licensing terms, which Nokia hasn’t been willing to offer.
Apple also points to comments made by a Nokia executive after the original iPhone’s launch. The executive claimed they had interest in copying Apple’s inventions. Really.
As Anssi Vanjoki, Nokia’s Executive Vice President and General Manager of Multimedia, stated at Nokia’s GoPlay event in 2007 when asked about the similarities of Nokia’s new offerings to the already released iPhone: “If there is something good in the world, we copy with pride.”
I don’t think Nokia is going to win this. Apple knows how to lawyer up.
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