Original Mac designer Susan Kare takes stand in Apple v. Samsung trial

Posted:
in General Discussion edited May 2018
Two Apple expert witnesses took the stand in the recently restarted Apple v. Samsung patent trial on Wednesday, with lawyers on each side disputing how Samsung should pay for infringing on three Apple design patents.

iPhone Patent
Iillustration from Apple's '087 patent.


With Samsung found guilty of infringing Apple's IP nearly six years ago, the current court action centers around how damages should be assigned. Apple is again seeking more than $1 billion for its work -- and bold bet -- on iPhone.

Discussing the product in court on Tuesday, product marketing VP Greg Joswiak said Apple was "betting the company" in launching iPhone. As such, the company filed for and received a vast number of patents protecting everything from communications techniques to the smartphone's industrial design.

For example, when late company co-founder Steve Jobs showed off multitouch technology on the original iPhone in 2007, he famously said, "And boy have we patented it."

It is the power of these patents that are now on trial.

In a round of questioning on Wednesday, Apple expert witnesses Adam Ball and Susan Kare argued the merits of Apple's patents, reports CNET. More importantly, the pair sided with Apple's lawyers in viewing three granted design patents as applicable to iPhone's "articles of manufacture."

In the U.S., damages in patent lawsuits are meted out based on the "article of manufacture," which precedent prior to Apple v. Samsung called for calculations on whole device sales. However, with rapid industry advancements in the field of consumer technology, manufacturers often incorporate a multitude of smaller components in a final, "whole" product.

Following the initial 2012 ruling, Samsung filed a number of appeals -- some successful -- including a Supreme Court petition arguing damages in patent trials should be assigned based on a part or portion of profits attributable to an infringing part, not profits on a complete device.

Samsung argued damages should be limited only to those parts of a device found in infringement of a plaintiff's patents, not sales of the entire product. That difference could equate to millions or billions of dollars, especially in the case of the popular and pricey iPhone.

The Supreme Court agreed with Samsung's assessment, and in a unanimous decision in 2016 ruled damages for patent infringement can be based on individual components. The highest court in the land, as well as the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, failed to specify guidelines in identifying an appropriate "article of manufacture," leaving such determinations to lower federal courts.

Under questioning by Apple's legal team, Ball argued the "article of manufacture" of U.S. Patent No. D618,677, an infamous piece of IP detailing a black, rectangular device with round corners. Ball argued much the same for Patent No. D593,087 showing ornamental designs for a device with rounded corners and internal bezel regions.

Kare, a former Apple designer known to many as the "woman who gave the Macintosh a smile," presented a similar argument for Patent No. D604,305. The IP covers iPhone OS graphics, specifically a formatted grid of app icons laid out across iPhone's home screen.

"To me, no question -- in each case, the D'305 was applied to each of these finished phones -- the whole phone," Kare said of Samsung devices, according to CNET.

Samsung's lawyers did, however, manage to squeeze concessions out of both Ball and Kare, who both acknowledged smartphones are made of individual components. In particular, Kare said, "I get that a display screen is a thing," suggesting it and other parts are articles of manufacture. She also agreed that Apple's patent illustrations include dotted lines that, while providing a complete picture of iPhone, are not necessarily covered in its claims.

For his part, Ball conceded that smartphones can be dismantled into individual parts, but stressed the jury should focus on the final design.

"Just because you can take something apart doesn't mean it was designed to be that way. If you replace [a component], you're trying to get back to that thing that you bought," he said.

The case is scheduled to run through this week, with closing arguments to be delivered on Friday.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 13
    claire1claire1 Posts: 510unconfirmed, member
    How F'n hard is it to reach the conclusion that Sammy copied with their knockoff products? It's so obvious it's ridiculous.
    olsradarthekatjony0XanderPlooywatto_cobra
  • Reply 2 of 13
    genovellegenovelle Posts: 1,481member
    claire1 said:
    How F'n hard is it to reach the conclusion that Sammy copied with their knockoff products? It's so obvious it's ridiculous.
    That part was decided 6 years ago. This to determine how much they pay for the copying. 
    racerhomie3
  • Reply 3 of 13
    claire1claire1 Posts: 510unconfirmed, member
    genovelle said:
    claire1 said:
    How F'n hard is it to reach the conclusion that Sammy copied with their knockoff products? It's so obvious it's ridiculous.
    That part was decided 6 years ago. This to determine how much they pay for the copying. 
    Sorry I'm just tired of the articles and I could have sworn the case was re-opened by Sammy. Also they should pay %100 of all sales.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 4 of 13
    crossladcrosslad Posts: 527member
    Without the copying Samsung wouldn't have sold these phones, so the damages should be applied to the whole phone. In fact the sale of one of these devices probably resulted in a loss of a sale to Apple. The damages should be based on how much profit Apple list, not how much Samsung made.
    radarthekatclaire1jony0watto_cobra
  • Reply 5 of 13
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,851member
    " .... how Samsung should pay for infringing on three Apple design patents.""

    Easy, bring back the lash!
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 6 of 13
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    For some reason this all feels very familiar... it’s like déjà vu.


    /s
    edited May 2018 watto_cobra
  • Reply 7 of 13
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,851member
    For some reason this all feels very familiar... it’s like déjà vu.


    /s
    Didn't you just say that? ;)
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 8 of 13
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    MacPro said:
    For some reason this all feels very familiar... it’s like déjà vu.


    /s
    Didn't you just say that? ;)
    For some reason this all feels very familiar... it’s like déjà vu...
    claire1jony0watto_cobra
  • Reply 9 of 13
    hammeroftruthhammeroftruth Posts: 1,354member
    It's sad how long and drawn out this has become and in the end the victory will be hollow for Apple. 

    The damage has been done. The general public doesn't give a rats ass that Apple was ripped off, especially since they make so much money, but that's besides the point. 

    Samsung hasn't changed. They still rip off ideas from other companies. Just look at how they ripped off Dyson. Plus Apple still has to use them, so there is no sympathy for Apple since the consensus is if you still do business with a bully, then you deserve the consequences. 

    Time would be better spent on moving forward and designing new products that they can make without relying on Samsung. 

    Its like Obi Wan said: "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."
    claire1watto_cobra
  • Reply 10 of 13
    nunzynunzy Posts: 662member
    Samsung should be shut down like ZTE. We need to protect American companies.
    hammeroftruthclaire1watto_cobra
  • Reply 11 of 13
    SpamSandwichSpamSandwich Posts: 33,407member
    It's sad how long and drawn out this has become and in the end the victory will be hollow for Apple. 

    The damage has been done. The general public doesn't give a rats ass that Apple was ripped off, especially since they make so much money, but that's besides the point. 

    Samsung hasn't changed. They still rip off ideas from other companies. Just look at how they ripped off Dyson. Plus Apple still has to use them, so there is no sympathy for Apple since the consensus is if you still do business with a bully, then you deserve the consequences. 

    Time would be better spent on moving forward and designing new products that they can make without relying on Samsung. 

    Its like Obi Wan said: "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."

    hammeroftruthXanderPlooy
    iu.gif 188.5K
  • Reply 12 of 13
    claire1claire1 Posts: 510unconfirmed, member
    It's sad how long and drawn out this has become and in the end the victory will be hollow for Apple. 

    The damage has been done. The general public doesn't give a rats ass that Apple was ripped off, especially since they make so much money, but that's besides the point. 

    Samsung hasn't changed. They still rip off ideas from other companies. Just look at how they ripped off Dyson. Plus Apple still has to use them, so there is no sympathy for Apple since the consensus is if you still do business with a bully, then you deserve the consequences. 

    Time would be better spent on moving forward and designing new products that they can make without relying on Samsung. 

    Its like Obi Wan said: "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."
    Apple needs to introduce their display tech ASAP. The conclusion will be Apple inventing superior tech and dropping this turd.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 13 of 13
    MacPro said:
    For some reason this all feels very familiar... it’s like déjà vu.


    /s
    Didn't you just say that? ;)
    For some reason this all feels very familiar... it’s like déjà vu...
    ...all over again.
    watto_cobra
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