Hasta La Gadget!

Giovanni Ribisi had better hope he doesn’t botch a job anytime soon. Flavio Garcia from the University of Birmingham cracked the security system that pairs an owner’s key to their Porsche, Lamborghini or Audi, and Volkswagen’s parent company wants that research to remain unpublished. The UK’s high court sided with VW’s owner and granted an injunction protecting the Megamos Crypto system. Afterward, Garcia was offered to print his findings, but without the all-important decryption codes. He refused, saying that the public has a right to see the holes in the systems it relies on and that this wasn’t an attempt to give criminals a hand in boosting cars. While the court’s logic is sound — once revealed, all manner of “if this ever fell into the wrong hands” situations could arise — it’s unsettling to see government bend to corporate request. At least we know Eleanor can sit in the garage for just a little longer now.

Filed under: Transportation

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Via: BoingBoing

Source: The Guardian

In an email to press, HTC took the opportunity to make a few clarifications about the injunction filed by Nokia this week regarding the dual-membrane microphone in the One. The preliminary injunction claims that the high-amplitude mic, which HTC uses in its flagship device, was supposed to be manufactured exclusively for the Finnish company (and currently used in the Lumia 720). If you’ve been wondering how this particular action would affect sales of the high-end HTC handset, spokespeople assure us that it’s business as usual for the company. According to its official statement, the One is not the actual target of any injunction in The Netherlands — in actuality, the legalities of the matter are apparently only between Nokia and STMicroelectronics, the supplier of the component in question.

HTC tells us that Nokia’s attempts to institute a recall of the One failed; since the products were purchased in good faith, the ruling states that HTC can continue to use microphones that are in its inventory. Despite having a history rich in manufacturing delays, we’re told that this legal ruling will have no effect on the One’s availability. The Taiwanese phone maker plans a transition to “improved microphone designs” as soon as its current stock of STM supplies has been exhausted, a move which HTC claims will be transparent to consumers. Head below to see the full statement.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, HTC, Nokia

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Don’t worry, this time it’s not a patent issue. However, it is more bad news for HTC’s already-delayed One. Nokia has been granted an injunction by the Amsterdam district court concerning the technology HTC used in its current flagship. The legal battle involves a pair of high-amplitude mics housed within One’s aluminum body, which are apparently the same dual-membrane components that Nokia’s used in its recent Lumia 720, seen above.

The Finnish company recently applied for a preliminary injunction, pointing the finger at ST Microelectronics, which is responsible for manufacturing the mic for both Nokia and HTC. According to our source, the issue is likely to be a breach of an NDA between Nokia and ST Electronics, as the phone maker asserts that the “microphone components [were] invented by and manufactured exclusively for Nokia.” We’re still hearing new details and will update as we learn more. We’ve also reached out to HTC for comment. For now, you can read up on Nokia’s statement following the court’s decision, embedded after the break.

Update: HTC has offered up an official statement in response to the injunction: “HTC is disappointed in the decision. We are considering whether it will have any impact on our business and we will explore alternative solutions immediately.”

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, HTC, Nokia

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A patent struggle between LG Display and Samsung Display kicked off late last year when the latter filed a lawsuit claiming its counterpart had stolen technology secrets tied to the production of OLED screens. In turn, LG threatened its own injunctions and the fight was on but now it may be moving towards a resolution. After rumors indicated the two were trying to talk it out a few days ago Samsung Display dropped its injunction request, and now LG has responded in kind. After dropping its request for an injunction preventing the sale of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 10.1 in South Korea, LG Display says it is seeking a resolution “through an amicable negotiation” — you can read the official statement in full after the break. With any luck, these two will have hugged it out by the time their latest round of devices are ready to ship, and we can enjoy our HDTVs, phones and tablets in peace.

Filed under: Displays, Samsung, LG

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When Samsung came swinging with allegations of OLED patent infringements and corporate theft, LG promptly counter-sued. Samsung then escalated by broadening its list of patent complaints, forcing LG to do what any dignified electronics brawler would have to do: file for a retaliatory injunction against the “sale, manufacture and importation” of one of Sammy’s products. The device at stake today is the unsuspecting Galaxy Note 10.1, which has no direct rival among LG’s current product range but which is claimed to have breached three LG display patents concerning the improvement of viewing angles. For its part, Samsung is dismissing the attack as “unjustified” and doesn’t seem overly concerned by LG’s demand for damages — nothing less than a billion won ($1 million) for each day the Note 10.1 continues to be made and sold.

Filed under: Tablets, Samsung, LG

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Via: FOSS Patents

Source: Dow Jones