Patent trolls love Apple. And, they are everywhere.
The maker of iPhone and iPad is being attacked from all directions. The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) and Germany-based patent-holding firm IPCom are the latest organizations complaining that Apple has stepped on their toes. In their respective lawsuits, WARF and IPCom have demanded that Apple stop violating the patents they hold and have asked payment for damages incurred.
WARF vs. Apple
WARF is the designated organization by the University of Wisconsin to manage its patents and has filed a complaint at the Court for the Western District of Wisconsin accusing Apple violated its patent with the production of the A7 processor and its products that use the latest chip.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison was granted Patent Number 5,781,752 on July 14,1998 that served as basis for the lawsuit. The patent "Table Based Data Speculation Circuit for Parallel Processing Computer" is attributed to Andreas Moshovos and three other colleagues.
The Patent '752 refers to a designed system that helps speed up a processor by guessing correctly instructions that may match a new input and by initiating actions before an input is entered by the user. The technology is not an original creation of the university but its team of inventors introduced significant improvements and changes to make it better.
Just like other patents, that of Apple's cited similar patents including Patent '752.
"WARF is informed and believes, and on this basis alleges, that Apple's newest products-including the iPhone 5S, the iPad Air, and the iPad Mini with Retina Display-each use Apple's newest A7 processor. WARF is informed and believes, and on this basis alleges, that Apple has incorporated the technology of WARF's '752 patent into the A7 processor to achieve enhanced efficiency and performance. WARF now asks this Court to prevent Apple's unauthorized use of the '752 patent," states the lawsuit.
WARF demands that Apple pay it damages in case the latter is guilty of infringement.
Apple has avoided disclosing details about its latest processor but with this lawsuit it might be required by court to reveal details about the structure of the A7, a scenario it will most likely avoid through settlement.
IPCom vs. Apple
On Wednesday, patent holding firm IPCom filed a lawsuit in Mannheim, Germany alleging that Apple infringed on a cellular technology that makes emergency calls top priority in communication networks. IPCom is asking the court to order Apple to pay damages amounting to $2.12 billion.
Apple is set to meet IPCom in court on Feb. 11 for a legal tussle involving two patents.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the German organization clarified through its spokesperson that the amount it demands in the latest lawsuit only involves infringement committed locally. It might take similar actions in other countries where Apple violated the said patents in question.
The filing of IPCom, which holds over 1,000 patents on mobile communication technologies, follows the rejection of the European Patent Office of an appeal by Apple, HTC, Nokia, and other companies to declare the patent claimed by IPCom as invalid.
IPCom was established in 2007 by former Bosch patent lawyer Bernhard Frohwitter.
Apple cries foul, appeals to court to stop patent trolls
With patent lawsuits clobbering Apple from all corners of the globe, it has joined Google and other companies in asking the Supreme Court of the United States to consider slacking on rules that prevent them from collecting legal fees from entities that lose cases against them. Apple has over 200 unresolved cases of patent infringement. Since 2011, it has settled over 50 cases.
"Apple has rarely lost on the merits. But victory figures as small consolation because in every one of these cases, Apple has been forced to bear its legal fees," read a copy of the court filing of Apple.
There are two scheduled arguments in February that may help the court decide on rules that affect fee awards in patent cases.
