US judge dismisses Apple vs. Motorola patent lawsuit

Apple likes lawsuits. Anyone who keeps keeps up with the mobile tech industry will tell you the same thing. More than a few Android OEMs have faced lawsuits from the Cupertino legal team, and unfortunately, sometimes those lawsuits have some pretty serious consequences. Not all of the lawsuits end in Apple’s favor, though, and in this case of Apple against Motorola, the legal train stopped before it ever really got started.

Not too long ago, Apple filed a lawsuit against Motorola. It wasn’t about the patents themselves, but instead about licensing those patents. Apple claimed Motorola’s licensing practices were unfair. Late last week, however, District Judge Barbara Crabb questioned whether or not she had the authority to hear the claims made by Apple, and ultimately dismissed the case on Monday. Apple declined to comment, but a spokesperson for Google said they were pleased with the order. Apple did file a legal brief afterwards, though, and claimed Judge Crabb did have the authority to hear the claims.

Previously in Wisconsin, Judge Crabb did rule in a run-up trial that she might decide what fair licensing costs would be, although Apple insisted that they would not consider themselves bound by Crabb’s rate if it were to exceed $1 per Apple phone. Because of Apple’s position, Crabb questioned whether she judge the issue if she could only give an advisory opinion, which lead to her eventually dismissing the case.

Google and Motorola stated that they had long offered licensing deals at reasonable rates, and they were interested in reaching an agreement with Apple. Apple, though, apparently isn’t content with “reasonable rates.” This isn’t the first time Apple’s had a claim dismissed by a judge, and it’s certainly not the first, or last, lawsuit that Apple will continue to file against Android OEMs and other manufacturers. Eventually, you would think that they would learn innovation is more profitable than legal action, right?

source: Reuters