“Apple Inc., ordered by a jury to pay $8 million for violating patents with its music playlists on the iPod, won a U.S. court ruling that Personal Audio LLC can’t seek additional damages from use on the iPad, iPhone and Macs,” Susan Decker reports for Bloomberg.
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“The decision [on Friday] by U.S. District Judge Ron Clark in Lufkin, Texas, effectively shuts off efforts by Personal Audio to pursue a second patent-infringement lawsuit that it filed against Apple after the July 8 jury verdict,” Decker reports. “‘The court finds that the jury’s selection of lump sum as the appropriate form of reasonable royalty clearly represents a damages award giving Apple a fully paid up license that covers all past and future use of the patented technology,’ Clark said in a decision posted on the court’s website.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: That’s it, troll. Back under your bridge now, you’re cut off.
Related articles:
After $8 million jury verdict against Apple, troll wants more and sues over iPhone 4 and iPad 2 – July 20, 2011
Eastern Texas court orders Apple to pay $8 million in patent trial over iPod playlists – July 9, 2011
Maybe these East Texas courts rare coming to see the ‘light’!
courts rare coming = courts are coming
8 million = maybe 1 hour of profit for Apple?
More than mere drops of $$$, suits like these set an unfortunate precedent for other bottom feeders.
Any guesses as to how much out of the 8 million Personal Audio actually gets to pocket after Uncle Sam and the Attorneys take their share? (Boy, that sounds like a music group.)
My guess is 2.5 million.
Uncle Sam doesn’t take a cut of law suit winnings. 30% goes to attorneys + expenses.
If the damages are in part considered recovery for lost profits I would think the IRS would consider them to be income and fully taxable. And you might be a bit low on the attorney’s fee percentage unless patent cases differ from personal injury cases in this regard.
They do at the end of the year as income.
They don’t take a cut at time of payment.
Headline: Rocket Docket Fizzles
When I first read this I thought someone lost their carefully engineered playlist and sued Apple.
Another company violates Apple’s patents – other company is evil
Apple violates another company’s patents – other company is evil
objectivity would be nice…but this is MDN
Bongo points out inconsistency – Bongo is evil
Wow… an apple hating troll calling for objectivity.
My head just exploded from the irony.
I love Apple. Own their products, own their shares. I just have a functioning brain as well.
Bongo, the problem here is that the company in question decided to go back to the well a second time. Having won, and awarded damages, it had filed a follow-up suit in an effort to get more money for the same patent. I, for one, don’t begrudge Personal Audio the court win (tho, like most, I think the Eastern District of Texas is a sleazy place to file a tech law suit). However, I also don’t blame Apple for countering that one bite at them was quite enough.