PanOptis presses for iPhone royalties following $506 million patent win

AppleInsider

Having beaten Apple in a patent dispute, PanOptis is asking for the courts to also award it permanent royalty payment per infringing iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, sold in future.

The court determined that Apple infringed PanOptis's 4G LTE patents

As Apple calls for a complete retrial, patent holder PanOptis wants its $506 million victory to be supplemented. The company's lawyers have asked a Texas federal judge to award it ongoing royalties for every iPhone, or other infringing device, Apple sells.

According to Law360, PanOptis argues that it should be awarded $4.22 per iPhone, $3.62 per iPad that infringes its patents, and $2.25 per Apple Watch.

"Case law and the facts strongly support an ongoing royalty at a rate higher than that awarded by the jury on a per patent, per-unit basis," said PanOptis in a court motion. "Nonetheless, plaintiffs seek an ongoing rate solely at the per-patent, per-unit rate awarded by the jury, without an increase."

"Despite the fact that Apple's ongoing infringement will be willful and thus an enhanced ongoing royalty rate is appropriate, plaintiffs only seek an ongoing royalty equal to the jury's implied rate," continued the motion.

PanOptis says that its figures regarding iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch royalties is calculated based on the jury's awarding it $506 million for Apple's apparently willfull infringement of 4G LTE patents.

Apple is contesting how, it claims, the jury was directed to consider "nine claims from five patents into one question."




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inspiredcode

I’d rather not be paying a patent troll indirectly $10+ per year for junk vague patents. This could easily add up to $100s over multiple patent trolls.  These patents are only serving people that manipulate the system for their own gain and don’t contribute to meaningful R&D. The patent system needs new tougher standards and retroactive removal of all existing patents that are designed for rent seeking. The rent seeking by these patent trolls is indirectly defrauding consumers. Apple and Intel are suing some patent trolls using antitrust regulation covering rent seeking. I’d love to see class actions against them as well.

edited March 2021

soundjudgment

More Patent Trolls jabbing their sticky-fingers into the Apple Pie. 

kuyangkoh

SoundJudgment said:

More Patent Trolls jabbing their sticky-fingers into the Apple Pie. 

I wonder how much these juries get paid too

nicholfd

Kuyangkoh said:

SoundJudgment said:

More Patent Trolls jabbing their sticky-fingers into the Apple Pie. 

I wonder how much these juries get paid too

Peanuts.  In Indiana, it was $10 per day - enough to cover lunch.

gatorguy

Kuyangkoh said:

SoundJudgment said:

More Patent Trolls jabbing their sticky-fingers into the Apple Pie. 

I wonder how much these juries get paid too

In the Federal Court it's $50/day. Bank'n!

edited March 2021

filemakerfeller

AppleInsider said:

Apple is contesting how, it claims, the jury was directed to consider "nine claims from five patents into one question."

So when Apple simplifies complex things to seek the essential nature of the situation it's praiseworthy, but when the judicial system tries to get at the crux of the matter, Apple complains.

That said, if these are 4G LTE patents then they are part of the standard and one of the benefits of a standard is that everything gets pooled so that only the standards body collects payment from customers and portions it out to contributors. I don't see why PanOptis should be granted extra by going after a customer directly. But I'm not from Texas, so...

gatorguy

FileMakerFeller said:

AppleInsider said:

Apple is contesting how, it claims, the jury was directed to consider "nine claims from five patents into one question."

That said, if these are 4G LTE patents then they are part of the standard and one of the benefits of a standard is that everything gets pooled so that only the standards body collects payment from customers and portions it out to contributors. I don't see why PanOptis should be granted extra by going after a customer directly. But I'm not from Texas, so...

Ummm... Not exactly. Some standards may involve several different pools with different patent holders contributing. Some patent owners handle licensing outside of a pool altogether. You can assert SEP's without committing to (F)RAND at all as a matter of fact.
https://www.essentialpatentblog.com/2020/04/caltech-gets-1-1-billion-verdict-against-apple-broadcom-on-seps-that-had-no-rand-commitment/
There's not really "one pool to rule them all". 

As far as essential patent licensing that's just as clear as mud as it was 5 years ago, and it's not getting any clearer.
https://www.law360.com/articles/1232895/new-injunction-policy-boosts-power-of-essential-patents
https://www.law.com/thelegalintelligencer/2020/10/22/demystifying-2020s-standard-essential-patents-and-frand-licensing-disputes/?slreturn=20210231171059

By the way, an earlier ruling (last year) from the court responding to Apple's objections and request for dismissal involving standards, worldwide royalty rates, and these particular patents. 
https://www.essentialpatentblog.com/2020/04/judge-gilstrap-dismisses-foreign-sep-frand-claims-in-global-sep-feud-but-maintains-claims-on-us-seps-optic-wireless-v-apple/

edited March 2021