Apple has right this moment been ordered to pay greater than $700 million to the Texas-based mobile expertise firm Optis in a landmark UK patent ruling (through ipfray).
In London, the England and Wales Court docket of Enchantment right this moment dominated that Apple should pay a lump sum of $502 million to Optis Mobile Expertise LLC for the usage of standard-essential 4G patents in iPhones and iPads over a 14-year interval spanning from 2013 to 2027. The choice marks a dramatic improve from the $56.43 million initially awarded by the Excessive Court docket in 2023. Along with the revised damages determine, the brand new judgment additionally contains curiosity, which may exceed $200 million, bringing Apple’s complete legal responsibility within the case to greater than $700 million.
The dispute facilities on whether or not Apple breached its obligations to license the patents on FRAND (honest, affordable, and non-discriminatory) phrases, that are required beneath worldwide requirements for the usage of important wi-fi expertise. Optis is a Texas-based entity that doesn’t manufacture merchandise however holds and licenses mental property. It first raised the case in London in 2019.
Apple had beforehand argued that the royalty charges proposed by Optis have been extreme and never compliant with FRAND ideas. In an announcement offered to ReutersApple stated “We’re upset by this resolution and plan to attraction.”
Optis makes no merchandise and their sole enterprise is to sue firms utilizing patents they purchase. We’ll proceed to defend in opposition to their makes an attempt to extract unreasonable funds.
The ruling is believed to be one of many largest patent damages awards in UK historical past. In keeping with authorized filings, Apple had beforehand expressed concern that an unfavorable royalty ruling may represent grounds for exiting the UK market. Whereas the corporate later walked again that place, the $700 million judgment strikes the case considerably nearer to that earlier worst-case state of affairs than had been anticipated following the Excessive Court docket’s authentic dedication.
Apple can nonetheless petition the UK Supreme Court docket to overview the case, however such appeals are normally granted solely in restricted circumstances, comparable to vital factors of legislation or issues of public curiosity.
Fashionable Tales
iPhone 17’s Scratch Resistant Anti-Reflective Show Coating Canceled
Apple might have canceled the tremendous scratch resistant anti-reflective show coating that it deliberate to make use of for the iPhone 17 Professional fashions, in accordance with a supply with dependable data that spoke to MacRumors. Final spring, Weibo leaker Instantaneous Digital urged Apple was engaged on a brand new anti-reflective show layer that was extra scratch resistant than the Ceramic Protect. We have not heard…
iPhone 17 Reaches Key Milestone Forward of Mass Manufacturing
Apple has accomplished Engineering Validation Testing (EVT) for a minimum of one iPhone 17 mannequin, in accordance with a paywalled preview of an upcoming DigiTimes report. iPhone 17 Air mockup based mostly on rumored design The EVT stage includes Apple testing iPhone 17 prototypes to make sure the {hardware} works as anticipated. There are nonetheless DVT (Design Validation Check) and PVT (Manufacturing Validation Check) levels to…
twentieth Anniversary iPhone Prone to Be Made in China On account of ‘Terribly Advanced’ Design
Apple will seemingly manufacture its twentieth anniversary iPhone fashions in China, regardless of broader efforts to shift manufacturing to India, in accordance with Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. In 2027, Apple is planning a “main shake-up” for the iPhone lineup to mark 20 years for the reason that authentic mannequin launched. Gurman’s earlier reporting signifies the corporate will introduce a foldable iPhone alongside a “daring”…
iPhone 17 Air USB-C Port Could Have This Uncommon Design Quirk
Apple is making ready to launch a dramatically thinner iPhone this September, and if current leaks are something to go by, the so-called iPhone 17 Air may boast probably the most radical design shifts in recent times. iPhone 17 Air dummy mannequin alongside iPhone 16 Professional (credit score: AppleTrack) At simply 5.5mm thick (excluding a barely raised digital camera bump), the 6.6-inch iPhone 17 Air is predicted to change into …
What’s Subsequent for the Apple Watch Extremely 3 and Apple Watch SE 3
This week marks the tenth anniversary of the Apple Watch, which launched on April 24, 2015. Yesterday, we recapped options rumored for the Apple Watch Sequence 11, however since 2015, the Apple Watch has additionally branched out into the Apple Watch Extremely and the Apple Watch SE, so we thought we would check out what’s subsequent for these product traces, too. 2025 Apple Watch Extremely 3 Apple did not replace the…
AirPods Professional 3 Simply Months Away – This is What We Know
Regardless of being greater than two years previous, Apple’s AirPods Professional 2 nonetheless dominate the premium wi-fi‑earbud area, due to a potent mixture of prime‑tier audio, class‑main noise cancellation, and Apple’s behavior of delivering main new options by software program updates. With AirPods Professional 3 broadly anticipated to reach in 2025, potential patrons now face a well-known dilemma: snap up the confirmed…
iPhone 17 Professional Launching Later This 12 months With These 13 New Options
Whereas the iPhone 17 Professional and iPhone 17 Professional Max are usually not anticipated to launch till September, there are already loads of rumors in regards to the gadgets. Under, we recap key modifications rumored for the iPhone 17 Professional fashions as of April 2025: Aluminum body: iPhone 17 Professional fashions are rumored to have an aluminum body, whereas the iPhone 15 Professional and iPhone 16 Professional fashions have a titanium body, and the iPhone …
All iPhone 17 Fashions Once more Rumored to Characteristic 12GB of RAM
All upcoming iPhone 17 fashions will come geared up with 12GB of RAM to assist Apple Intelligence, in accordance with the Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. The declare from the Chinese language leaker, who has sources inside Apple’s provide chain, comes a number of days after business analyst Ming-Chi Kuo stated that the iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Professional, and iPhone 17 Professional Max will all be geared up with 12GB of RAM. …
