The Mac Observer

This is an iPod Observer article.

Nokia Could Face Counter Suit from Apple

November 6th, 2009 at 10:39 AM - News by Jeff Gamet

Nokia recently filed a lawsuit against Apple for allegedly infringing on patents with its iPhone lineup, but the mobile phone maker could potentially face a counter suit claiming it is infringing on Apple's patents, too, according to Reuters.

"I would not be surprised to see a counter-claim from Apple citing patents it owns that it believes Nokia is infringing," commented CSS Insight Research Director Ben Wood. "This type of tit-for-tat approach has occured in previous patent battles as each player tries to improve its negotiating position."

Nokia claimed that Apple is using patented technology it owns related to wireless data transfer, security, speech coding, and encryption. Analysts estimate Nokia is asking for damages somewhere in the range of US$200,000 and $1 billion.

The two companies could be tangled in a legal battle that lasts years, and depending on the tactics they use, might end up in European courts, too. Should either company take their case to the U.S. International Trade Commission, the court proceedings could stall for years while the organization evaluates the patents.

Assuming Apple sues Nokia over possible patent infringements, there's a possibility the two cases could be merged together.

Despite both companies plans to vigorously defend themselves, analysts tend to agree that an out of court settlement makes the most sense.

"Nokia wants to be careful it doesn't kill the goose with the golden egg while Apple does not want to tarnish its premium brand by being continuously sued by other companies for using their technologies without payment," said Steven Nathasingh, managing director of the research company Vaxa.

5 Observer Comments

It seems like a pretty safe bet that Apple’s legal team will fire back at Nokia with a lawsuit of its own. Both sides seem pretty adamant about defending their intellectual property, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see this drag out for a long time.

Yeah, but I get the impression that Nokia needs an out-of-court settlement, and I think that Apple would prefer a real battle, taken to the mats—in court. Squeeze Nokia until it hurts too much… wonder how this will end…

-Jon

Always good to see Nokia taking the ‘lawful’ route. Here’s a brave Nokia-Siemens partner (he’s the one with jack boots and baton) in recent political discussion with Iranian women: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5s4iXeQOkE (Nokia-Siemens have ongoing contracts with the Iranian regime to assist with the ongoing lawful monitoring of unruly women such as these).

It’s a shame Nokia uses all their money for lawyers instead of developing a worthy iPhone competitor.

Apple should do the phone market a favour. Buy Nokia, take what little good is left and shut them down! Of course the EU might frown… but so what.

Page 1 of 1 pages
Login. Need an account? Register here.



Auto-login on future visits

Show my name in the online users list

Forgot your password?


Commenting is not available in this section entry.
 

Recent Headlines - Updated February 9th

Tue, 6:27 PM
iPad - Apple Job Posting Hints at a Camera in Future iPads
6:22 PM
Product News - Apple Releases Digital Camera RAW Compatibility Update 3.0
6:18 PM
Product News - Apple Updates iLife ‘09 with Aperture 3 Support, Slideshow Performance
4:53 PM
News - Google Introduces “Buzz” Social Information Sharing Service
4:19 PM
Just a Thought - iPad: A Reason For Being
3:28 PM
News - Google Lowers Nexus One “Equipment Recovery Fee” to $150
2:27 PM
Deal Brothers - Refurbished 13” MacBook 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo:  $749
1:31 PM
Jeff Gamet's Blog - Macworld Expo: It’s Our Show, Not Apple’s
10:38 AM
Quick Look Review - Texas Tea for the iPhone and iPod touch
10:25 AM
News - Apple Rolls Out Aperture 3 Video Tutorials
10:00 AM
Hot Forum Topic - Backing Up Your iPhoto Library
9:35 AM
Product News - Notebook, iThoughts Add TextExpander touch Support
 

The Mac Observer Reader Specials

Apple Stock Quote

  • AAPL: $196.19. Change: +2.07.
  • (Prices delayed up to 20 minutes.)
  • Discuss in our Apple Finance Board

Hot Topics

TMO Express

Join the TMO Express Daily Newsletter to get the latest Mac headlines in your e-mail every weekday. Find out more!

Top Deals From DealBrothers.com

Recent Features

Support The Mac Observer

We noticed you may be running AdBlock on your computer. It takes real money to run this site and to deliver the news, tips, and opinions you love to read.

If you wish to block the ads that pay for the creation of our content, we ask that you instead support TMO Directly, either with a $5 monthly recurring contribution, or a one-time donation of any amount of your choice. Thanks!

Subscribe with Paypal Donate with Paypal