Case Filed: Apr 08, 2014
Origin case: 2:10-cv-03257
Case Summary:
NetAirus Technologies,
California-based patent holding company sued Apple for infringing a patent
covering a method for handset unit communication. The suit was filed in California
Central District Court in Apr 2010. NetAirus alleged that Apple infringed the
claims of the patent by manufacturing mobile handset devices including iPhones.
The suit revolves around the
patent US7103380 entitled ‘Wireless handset communication system’ that was
issued on Sep 05, 2006 and expires[i]
by Apr 04, 2017. The ‘380 patent is currently assigned[ii]
to NetAirus (source: MaxVal’s Assignment
Database). The patent relates to a computer unit, having light weight thin
notebook-like structure that is capable of performing personal digital
assistant (PDA) like functions and wireless external communications of voice,
text, graphic and image data.
The complaint said, Apple has
knowledge of the ‘380 patent and the act of infringement was willful and
deliberate and demanded cash damages and a jury trial.
Trial commenced in Nov 2013 and the jury
reached a majority verdict in favor of Apple. Accordingly, the Court in Jan
2014, ordered that Apple does not directly infringe nor does induce
infringement on claims 3, 7, 9, 10, 11 or 12 of the ’380 patent and the
asserted claims are invalid due to obviousness and lack of written description.
The Court also found that Apple is the prevailing party and is entitled to
costs.
Based on the district court’s
ruling, NetAirus has filed an appeal in the United States Court of Appeals for
the Federal Circuit.
See 2014-1404
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[i] Expected expiration date. Patent
Term Estimator is a free web-based tool that automatically calculates patent
terms and expiration dates for U.S. utility patents.
[ii]
MaxVal offers Patent Assignment Alert service where subscribers receive email
alerts when assignments relating to target applications, patents or entities of
interest are recorded.
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