Apple gets Samsung to pay damages for infringement

A US jury ruling on a high-stake Apple-Samsung trial has ordered the latter to pay up USD 119.6 million dollars over violating Apple patents.

The California jury handed down the verdict on Friday over patent infringement issues, including unlocking touchscreens with slide gestures and retrieving data sought by users. The devices targeted by Apple include more than half a dozen smartphones from Samsung’s Galaxy line, along with the Galaxy 2 tablet.

Apple had been demanding USD 2.2 billion from the South Korean consumer electronics giant for violation of four smartphone patents.

Law professor at Santa Clara University Brian Love, however, said, “Though this verdict is large by normal standards, it is hard to view this outcome as much of a victory for Apple.”

“Apple launched this litigation campaign years ago with aspirations of slowing the meteoric rise of Android phone manufacturers. It has so far failed to do so, and this case won’t get it any closer.”

Samsung lawyers maintained that the legal onslaught emerged from a “holy war” Apple declared on Google-made Android software used to power smartphones.

Jurors also obliged Apple to pay its rival USD 158,400 in damages for infringing on one of Samsung’s patents.