Hasta La Gadget!

The FTC has been nosing around Google for a while now, having formally launched a probe back in June to look into whether the company is guilty of blocking competitors’ access to essential technology patents. Earlier this month, we reported that Google was looking into settling the issue. Now it seems the FTC has formally recommended that the company be sued.

According to the sources, most of the FTC’s five commissioners are in favor of a lawsuit. The final decision on the matter isn’t expected to be made until after the elections on the 6th. Google’s issues revolve around the patents it acquired after taking over Motorola. The company is trying to block Apple and Microsoft products that it says infringe on its patents.

The patents concern 3G, wifi, and video streaming technologies, which are standard-essential. Motorola was originally slinging around lawsuits, which Google received after acquiring the company, and it has elected to carry on those suits. If allowed, the blockage would affect such devices as Apple’s iPad and Microsoft’s Xbox.

The FTC has declined comment. Google’s spokeswoman, Niki Fenwick, however, stated, “We take our commitments to license on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory terms very seriously and are happy to answer any questions.” Google is also being probed into whether its advertisement, search, and mobile are harming competitors, with sources saying that the FTC has also recommended a lawsuit over that issue.

[via Business Week]

FTC reportedly recommends lawsuit against Google over patents is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple and Samsung‘s patent battle continues to rage all around the world, with one company picking up wins here and another coming out on top there. Today, we can chalk one up for Apple, as a Tokyo court has declared that the iPhone is not infringing on a pair of Samsung-held patents. The Asahi Shimbun reported the news this weekend, saying that two different verdicts have been handed down – one in September, and one earlier this month.

There are two separate patents at the center of this debate, both owned by Samsung in Japan. One deals with technology for downloading apps that bring increased functionality to the phone, while the other is for Airplane mode. Samsung said that the iPhone 4 and 4S were infringing on both of these patents, and naturally, Apple disagreed with that assertion. It seems that The Tokyo District Court is siding with Apple, as it said in a ruling that Apple isn’t infringing on Samsung’s first patent because the “app technology” on the iPhone is different than the tech on Samsung’s phones.

That ruling was handed down on September 14, whereas on October 11 the court decided that there wasn’t any infringement as it relates to Airplane mode on the basis that Airplane mode isn’t a new technology. So, that’s two Samsung patent claims that were denied by the Tokyo District Court. Elsewhere in the world, Samsung has been winning its claims, while in other places, the Korean company is coming up a bit short.

Still, the war between these two continues on, with no real end in sight. At this point, we’re thinking that both of these companies will continue fighting for as long as they have the money to hire lawyers, and indeed, these patent suits have apparently had a negative effect on Apple and Samsung’s manufacturing relationship. More details on these courtrooms brawls will undoubtedly be coming soon, so keep it tuned right here to SlashGear.

Samsung suffers setback against Apple in Tokyo court is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Motorola just cannot catch a break when it comes to patent suits in Germany. Motorola has already come out as the loser in patent disputes against Microsoft and Apple, and today, Microsoft announced that it has once again secured victory. A German court has found that multiple devices made by Motorola are infringing on a Microsoft patent for technology that allows a keyboard to communicate with an app, and Microsoft asserts that this technology has been built into Android.

That’s an assertion that the court agrees with, and you may be wondering why Microsoft has only brought this case against Motorola when there are plenty of other Android manufacturers out there with this tech built into their phones. Motorola and Google are the target of this lawsuit because every other Android manufacturer is paying Microsoft a royalty to use the tech. Since Google refused to pay up, Microsoft took it to court, and now we know the result of that patent suit.

By now, you know the drill: Microsoft posts a bond – $61.4 million in this case – to get the infringing devices banned from sale in Germany. Motorola has the chance to appeal, so the sales ban won’t go into effect until the results of that appeal are known. In addition, Google and Motorola will have to pay Microsoft damages, and if Google doesn’t want to remove the tech from Android, it will have to begin paying Microsoft a royalty.

When everything is added up, this is Microsoft’s third patent win against Motorola in Germany. Motorola has been hit hard in Germany lately, much to what we imagine is Google’s chagrin. After all, one of the reasons the search giant bought up Motorola Mobility is so it could access to its extensive patent portfolio. Instead of coming out on top, however, Google has been stuck paying the bill for Motorola’s own infringement, so it’s hard to believe that the executives at Google are happy at the moment. Stay tuned – we’ll bring you more details as they develop.

[via ComputerWorld]

Microsoft chalks up another patent win against Motorola is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

While Apple and Samsung were going at it over here in the States, Apple was in the middle of another patent suit with Motorola across the Atlantic. Apple’s patent suit against Motorola has been going back and forth for weeks now, but today FOSS Patents is reporting that the iPhone maker can chalk up another win. Multiple Motorola devices have been found to be infringing on the EP2126678 patent, which is the same as Apple’s ’381 patent in the United States. The patent, as some of you likely already know, is for the “rubber-banding” effect that occurs when users reach the end of a page – instead of having the page just stop scrolling when a user reaches the end, the page bounces back, indicating to users that they can scroll no further.

Most of us are familiar with the effect, but thanks to this decision, it may not be long before Motorola users have to go without. Since Apple has won this case, it can post a €25 million bond to gain an injunction against the infringing devices. You can bet that Apple will put up the money for such an injunction, but if Apple posts another €10 million, it can force Motorola to destroy the infringing devices. It doesn’t stop there though, as Apple can force Motorola to recall the infringing devices with another €10 million. This is all on top of the damages that Motorola will be obligated to pay.

Since Apple can be pretty aggressive when it comes to patents, it wouldn’t surprise to see the company pay the full €45 million. Then again, since Motorola’s market share isn’t all that big in Germany, it may choose to go with just the injunction. The injunction is permanent, but Google (Motorola’s owner) does have the ability to appeal the decision, something that will definitely happen. Naturally, this decision only applies to Germany, but with Apple recently winning a similar claim against Samsung here in the United States, it could eventually spell bad news for Android and the rubber-banding effect.

This is the third Apple patent that Motorola has been found to be infringing. The first was Apple’s slide-to-unlock patent, while the second was its flip-to-navigate photo gallery patent. Luckily, Motorola has something it can fall back on now that it can no longer use the rubber-banding effect in its phones – base versions of Android come with a special glow effect which alerts users that they’ve scrolled as far as they can possibly scroll. Have a look at our timeline below for the latest on Apple’s courtroom battles.

Apple comes out on top in Motorola rubber-banding patent suit is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Today Apple began sending out invites for its September 12 event, where the company is widely expected to reveal the next iPhone. The iPhone 5 is rumored to come complete with LTE functionality, but there’s just one problem with that: Samsung has said that it will sue Apple if it releases a device with LTE. Since Apple’s iPad already has LTE, we can take that to mean that Samsung will sue if Apple releases an iPhone with LTE capabilities.

Samsung has a significant number of of LTE patents at its disposal, whereas Apple had none. That has all changed, however, as it’s been revealed that Apple has bought up a ton of LTE patents (and even developed some of its own) in anticipation of such a lawsuit and/or the launch of the next iPhone. The Chosen Ilbo reports that last year, Apple didn’t have any LTE standard patents registered. Now that number has grown to 318 according to Korea Intellectual Property Office, meaning that Apple has 4.9% of all LTE patents – enough for Apple to become one of the top 10 LTE patent holders worldwide.

Of those 318 patents, Apple developed 44 on its own. The rest were purchased from Nortel and Freescale at some point last year. Furthermore, Apple owns a majority stake in Rockstar Bidco, a company which holds another 116 LTE patents, bringing Apple potential LTE patent portfolio up to 434. Samsung, by comparison, holds 819 LTE standard patents, so Apple has just over half as many LTE standard patents as Samsung.

That could provide a layer of defense should Samsung decide to take Apple to court citing its LTE implementation, but some are wondering just how much defense it will provide. The Chosen Ilbo points out that undisclosed commercial patents would prove to be a better defense than disclosed standard patents, so Apple may still have a fight ahead of it. We shall see, because regardless of whether or not Samsung will take it to court, the next iPhone appears to be on the way. Stay tuned.

iPhone 5 prepared for Samsung legal war with 434 LTE patents is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.