HTC joining up with Samsung against Apple

[Alwaysonacoffebreak]

HTC is also ready to sue Apple according a Bloomberg Businessweek report late last week. HTC owns US patents relating to LTE technology which is currently used by the latest US iPad and which is probably going to be utilised in the iPhone 5.

http://hexus.net/business/news/legal/45001-samsung-htc-will-sue-apple-iphone-5-utilising-lte/

[Vice]

Before people reply saying they won't win because of FRAND. Look at this part of the article right at the bottom:

Previously Apple used 3G technology in its products under FRAND terms (fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory). However sources in the Korea Times report said LTE patents are not standard essential patents (SEPs), but are ?new and highly-valued?.

This means HTC and Samsung who both have patents pertaining to the LTE technology definitely have a case. For Apple to win they would need to either set a precedent that these patents are essential to a new emerging standard there by defining LTE as being covered by FRAND which it currently is not or they would have to make their case that they haven't infringed on Samsung or HTC's patents which could be impossible.

In my mind I think Apple will try to make the case that LTE is a standard and should be covered under FRAND but there is no telling if they would win that argument.

[Alwaysonacoffebreak]

Well the judge has already accepted the case from HTC about LTE against Apple.

Also, as Samsung is actually creating the chips for Qualcomm (iPhone 5 is using qualcomm chips) it'll get interesting soon enough.

[(Spork)]

this could get interesting

[techbeck]

Wouldnt be surprised if more companies team up against Apple. Apple now suing for the slide to unlock, and other patents, means that if Apple wins these patent cases as well, Apple could sue all Android manufacturers.

[rkenshin]

Good.

[Astra.Xtreme]

How would LTE not be considered an SEP? LTE isn't a feature that can be copied. It's a standard that can be used/licensed.

[bjoswald]

Who cares? Apple pretty much controls the industry at this point. It's like Fedora and Ubuntu teaming up against Microsoft because Windows costs money. This is nothing more than a trainwreck sideshow for us nerds to chuckle about.

[+LogicalApex MVC]

Before people reply saying they won't win because of FRAND. Look at this part of the article right at the bottom:

This means HTC and Samsung who both have patents pertaining to the LTE technology definitely have a case. For Apple to win they would need to either set a precedent that these patents are essential to a new emerging standard there by defining LTE as being covered by FRAND which it currently is not or they would have to make their case that they haven't infringed on Samsung or HTC's patents which could be impossible.

In my mind I think Apple will try to make the case that LTE is a standard and should be covered under FRAND but there is no telling if they would win that argument.

3GPP considers all of their specs to require FRAND licensing... LTE was standardized by the 3GPP... I'm sure that would be a basic requirement as you can't have a standard that can't be licensed and used in the marketplace (that is a proprietary technology, not a standard).

FRAND definitely applies here and if it doesn't we'll end up seeing some major reshaping in the mobile phone world. I'm sure wireless carriers wouldn't be to happy if they couldn't reap the rewards of rolling out LTE networks.

[Growled Member]

I shouldn't feel this way but I hope they stick it to Apple.

[parazito86]

I am not sure about the idea, that it could even work :)

http://www.webcam-steamate.com/cookies/46/k/smile.gif[/img]

[ThePitt]

http://androidandme....ing-lte-patents

LOL. Stacy malibu (new hat) is going to fail this time...