Apple, Samsung CEO Last Minute Settlement Talks Fail

 

Apple CEO Tim Cook and Samsung CEO Kwon Oh Hyun met on Monday for last minute settlement discussions at Judge Lucy Koh’s request before their patent infringement case was handed over to a jury. The two companies failed to reach an agreement, however, which means the jury in the trial could start deliberating as early as today.

Apple and Samsung: No Settlement DealApple and Samsung: No Settlement Deal

Judge Koh has been pushing both sides to work out a settlement instead of allowing the case to be decided by the jury, and even said she was “pathologically optimistic” the two companies could reach an agreement.

Apple and Samsung have been fighting in courtrooms around the world over mobile device patent infringement complaints for more than a year. Both claim the other company is using patents without proper licensing, and Apple has also accused Samsung of blatantly copying the iPad’s look and feel.

Apple is claiming Samsung owes US$2.5 billion for patent infringement, and Samsung claims Apple owes 2.4 percent of all iPhone sales for using its patents without proper licensing.

The companies also failed to scale back their infringement claims as Judge Koh requested, which means the jury will be faced with a long and complex list to work through.

Attorneys from Apple and Samsung told the court Monday afternoon that their CEOs failed to agree on a settlement. Closing arguments are scheduled for Tuesday, after which the case will be in the jury’s hands.

[Thanks to Reuters for the heads up.]