“The International Trade Commission is expected this afternoon to rule on whether Apple and Research in Motion infringed by their mobile devices on patents that Eastman Kodak holds for previewing of images, after an ITC judge in March said instructed the commission to review an earlier rejection of Kodak’s claims,” Tiernan Ray blogs for Barron’s.
“‘The ITC rule in Kodak’s favor, we estimate RIM may settle for $450-550M and Apple may settle for $450-550M,’ …RBC Capital’s Mike Abramsky notes in a letter to clients… ‘The possible settlement equates to 17% of RIM’s $2.9B cash and 1% of Apple’s $66B cash.'” Ray reports. “I should point out that Abramsky says the ruling’s outcome is ‘unpredictable,’ so, I don’t think that he’s making a judgment as to which way the matter will come out tonight.”
Read more in the full article here.
FOSS Patent’s Florian Mueller discusses aspects of this dispute ahead of the decision, which is expected to be announced at 5pm EDT, here.
Related articles:
U.S. ITC judge rules against Apple in Kodak patent infringement case – May 12, 2011
Kodak wins round as ITC to review $1 billion Apple, RIM patent dispute – March 26, 2011
U.S. ITC ruling derails Kodak’s quest for royalties from Apple, RIM – January 24, 2011
Apple files patent infringement lawsuit against Kodak – April 19, 2010
U.S. ITC to probe Apple iPhones, RIM Blackberries after Kodak alleges patent infringement – February 17, 2010
Kodak sues Apple and RIM over image preview patents – January 14, 2010
Utter rubbish from Abramsky. Samsung sells far more phones than Apple, with cameras, and they only paid $550M. I’d be surprised if Kodak wins that Apple pays more than $150M.
Looks like AAPL will be paying Kodak and Nokia. What goes around comes back around. I see that AAPL is having a tough time with the judge regarding the “App Store” suit. May lose that one too? Apple is hounding small sites using the “App” in any fashion. It’s a tough world out there. And you thought MSFT was so ruthless and predatory? AAPL makes MSFT look like a bunch of pussies!
Except that Microsoft tended to win their battles back then
Ouch! Excellent point.
You’re full of it. There is no behavior on Apple’s part equivalent to ms’ “cut off their air supply,” or “knife the baby” for example.
Except that Apple actually innovates, while Microsoft and Google simply copy.
Xerox Parc genius?
Apple needs to stop being so self-righteous. Nokia and Sony, for instance, have been around the smartphone game for a long time, long before Apple. They’ve got the patents and experience to fire right back at Apple.
Apple seems to act like they’re the only ones making smartphones, almost in an arrogant way. I like the iPhone and have one… love Apple, but I’m objective.
The whole Apple invented the modern smartphone is bullshit in a way, and in a way not. Yes, they made multi-touch a practical reality on a smartphone. On the other hand, Apps and large touch-screened smartphones were around long before iOS. Nokia had an App Store back in 2003, some 8 years ago.
RIM had some elements of a smart phone, but a scroll ball UI. Nokia may have had an “App Store” and a touch screen phone, but it apparently did not make much of a splash – how many sold and who ever heard of it?
The fact is, Apple *did* invent the modern smartphone with the iPhone. As evidence, consider that the majority of current smartphones look and operate very similarly to the iPhone. The smartphone market took off with the iPhone.
Apple may not be perfect, but I don’t believe that “self-righteous” is the correct term. Apple is attempting to utilize the existing patent and legal systems to hold the parasites at arm’s length. These are flawed systems in which the best defense is a strong offense – so Apple has gone on the attack. You have to protect your turf, after all. Otherwise the other vendors will crap on it and leave you with a mess.
@KenC. Agree, you don’t ask a plaintiff how much he should get if he wins because he gives you his pie-in-the-sky figure knowing full well he eventually gets a fraction of it.
The Kodak CEO floated his wishful $1b figure around for the sole purpose of pimping his company stock with the hope that the moronic media and bogus analysts like Abramsky would pick it up and run with it which they did.
The media pretty much believe Kodak is going to win when in fact the odds favor Apple. They seem to forget that both the ITC staff and its Administrative Law Judge recommend against Kodak, so the ITC needs to show both of them are wrong in order to rule in favor of Kodak.
The decision delay also bodes ill for Kodak since it suggests a deadlock among the commissioners deciding the case.