Apple CEO Tim Cook stresses values, innovation in post-trial remarks
Apple CEO Tim Cook on Friday released an internal memo to employees regarding the largely favorable ruling the company received in its patent infringement suit against Samsung, saying values won the day.
While the letter to employees lifts some of its lines from the official response Apple issued after Friday's verdict, Cook mixes in a little emotion, saying the win over Samsung is important for inventors and innovators everywhere, reports All Things D.
The Apple v. Samsung jury found Samsung guilty of infringing upon a number of Apple design and software patents, ultimately awarding damages of nearly $1.05 billion to the Cupertino company.
The ruling came one year to the day after late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, then in the twilight of his life, announced Cook would replace him as CEO.
In his memo, Cook said the lawsuit was leveled "reluctantly and only after repeatedly asking Samsung to stop copying [Apple's] work," a sentiment the company argued during the trial. Apple offered as evidence a presentation it made to Samsung in 2010, which outlined the various patents thought to be infringed upon by the Korean electronics giant's smartphones.
The CEO made special note of Apple's ethos, and pointed out the lawsuit was less about money and patents than it was about values. "We value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth," he said.
Cook was "thrilled to finally have the opportunity to tell" Apple's story, a statement perhaps alluding not only to the company's role in the landmark case, but its history of innovation as well.
He concluded by thanking his employees, extolling them for the work they do, and proclaimed, "Today, values have won and I hope the whole world listens."
Cook's memo in full (as first published by 9to5Mac):
While the letter to employees lifts some of its lines from the official response Apple issued after Friday's verdict, Cook mixes in a little emotion, saying the win over Samsung is important for inventors and innovators everywhere, reports All Things D.
The Apple v. Samsung jury found Samsung guilty of infringing upon a number of Apple design and software patents, ultimately awarding damages of nearly $1.05 billion to the Cupertino company.
The ruling came one year to the day after late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, then in the twilight of his life, announced Cook would replace him as CEO.
In his memo, Cook said the lawsuit was leveled "reluctantly and only after repeatedly asking Samsung to stop copying [Apple's] work," a sentiment the company argued during the trial. Apple offered as evidence a presentation it made to Samsung in 2010, which outlined the various patents thought to be infringed upon by the Korean electronics giant's smartphones.
The CEO made special note of Apple's ethos, and pointed out the lawsuit was less about money and patents than it was about values. "We value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth," he said.
Cook was "thrilled to finally have the opportunity to tell" Apple's story, a statement perhaps alluding not only to the company's role in the landmark case, but its history of innovation as well.
He concluded by thanking his employees, extolling them for the work they do, and proclaimed, "Today, values have won and I hope the whole world listens."
Cook's memo in full (as first published by 9to5Mac):
Today was an important day for Apple and for innovators everywhere.
Many of you have been closely following the trial against Samsung in San Jose for the past few weeks. We chose legal action very reluctantly and only after repeatedly asking Samsung to stop copying our work. For us this lawsuit has always been about something much more important than patents or money. It's about values. We value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth. And we do this to delight our customers, not for competitors to flagrantly copy.
We owe a debt of gratitude to the jury who invested their time in listening to our story. We were thrilled to finally have the opportunity to tell it. The mountain of evidence presented during the trial showed that Samsung's copying went far deeper than we knew.
The jury has now spoken. We applaud them for finding Samsung's behavior willful and for sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn't right.
I am very proud of the work that each of you do.
Today, values have won and I hope the whole world listens.
Tim
Comments
Quote:
Originally Posted by AppleInsider
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ THIS ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
A great CEO and a righteous dude.
lol I think hes being alot more gracious than Steve Jobs would have been, if Steve were still around I think hed be rubbing it in a bit.
Interesting, I'm not too sure myself. This is the first time in Apples history that they have been able to defend themselves against obvious encroachment on their products. People complain about Apples legal tactics but in the past they simply didn't have the size to go after a large company like Samsung, thus the less than favorable deals with MicroSoft.
In the past Apple had to talk a good game, something Steve was really good at. The reality distortion field, the jabs at Microsofts copiers and a bunch of other things really where the best Apple could do. For a long time they where on the ropes so to speak and didn't have the capability to launch such legal fights.
It will be very interesting to watch the news and to see how this all plays out over the next couple of days.
All explained here (parody). Awesome and funny:
Conan O’Brien Breaks Down The Apple/Samsung Trial [VIDEO]
http://techcrunch.com/2012/08/08/conan-obrien-breaks-down-the-applesamsung-trial-video
No one has mentioned that this verdict against Samsung, has probably saved a number of companies that Samsung truly competes against: HTC, Sony, Nokia, Huwai... and Motorola/Google itself.
Actually, there’s a wide open door for Google to take advantage of... if they’re smart:
1) they distance themselves from Samsung, telling the world about their warning to Samsung, and that they were copying Apple too closely;
2) combat the dilution and fragmentation of Android, by not allowing OEMs to “skin” their products on display AND at the same time use the Android logo on that device in their advertising. The brand Android has suffered immensely from this.
3) require that “skins” be a user-installed option and be completely separate from the underlying Android code, so as to allow for easy upgrades.
The Android fans don’t want to hear this, but the jury and verdict just did you guys a HUGE favor...
....but again... only if Google is smart.
... there were some pretty nice looking prototype designs from both Apple and Samsung.
Those designs are now a matter of public record and no other company can make any of them.
I wonder who thinks Apple is doing a 180 course change from the direction Jobs set?
I wonder who thinks Apple can't survive without Jobs?
I wonder if this case will go down as the first big win for Cook?
I think you both have valid points but I am leaning toward xRCx on this one. I've listened to those All Things D audio clips of Steve Jobs not to long ago and do think that both Jobs and Cook would have said essentially the same thing but Jobs would have used a subtle word or two that was slightly less humble sounding. Not necessarily a caustic term but something a little more direct.
Quote:
Originally Posted by wizard69
Now let's hope that Apple can begin to value the desktop. Still waiting for signs of a desktop update, that is a new Mini, replacement for the Mini or a XMac. It is getting a bit frustrating as I really see no reason to delay the Mini for some funky iMac update.
You will never see an XMac. Ever.
A new Mini? Probably. Desktops are a dying breed to begin with, but AIOs have a lot of life left in them. iMac updates will be coming late 2012 or early 2013. The last one was May 2011. What's the problem?
Innovate or DIE bitches!
....and in the spirit of truly innovating, we are still awaiting the Vapor, err, I mean Surface, to, um, well surface.
I honestly hope you're not serious...
edit: meaning it is not an overlooked achievement at all...by any means....at any time in it's history...it receives constant praise and it's only complaint is that it has gotten stale but it still gets the job done very very well.
I think the fundamental issue is that desktops have reached the point where incremental improvements are meaningless for most people. Even an entry level Mac today is faster than 95% of people need, so there's not as much pressure for upgrades as there was 10 years ago.
The major exception is the Mac Pro where professionals need every ounce of power they can get, but that one is limited by availability of faster Xeon chips from Intel. However, even there Apple doesn't seem to be in a huge hurry to use Intel's latest Xeon chips, so there is some room for complaining in the Pro market. I consider that to be unfortunate. Apple owned the professional graphics market at one point and they also had a great departmental server in the xServe, but they're no longer ahead of the curve in the former and they gave up the latter.
Not true. Unless Apple specifically patented them, they're now "public domain". That means nobody CAN patent them and anyone can use them. Of course, it will ever be known where the real idea came from.
I just want to add that Tim Cook is my definition of a Class Act.
They want a personalized experience to build their brand. At least that's the theory.
Great work, Steve and Tim,
Quote:
Originally Posted by xRCx
lol I think hes being alot more gracious than Steve Jobs would have been, if Steve were still around I think hed be rubbing it in a bit.
Why? Certainly after all we have been apprised on Steve's character, particularly since his return to Apple, the evidence is to the contrary.
If anything, it is obvious from the trial transcripts that it was Steve that initiated the action against Samsung. And it was not with a subpoena.
There is no doubt that Steve fought hard to protect Apple's patents, however, Apple warned Samsung of possible patent infringement in 2010 presentation *
As described by Boris Teksler, head of Apple's patent licensing:
Quote:
The head of Apple’s patent licensing effort testified on Friday that Apple warned Samsung in 2010 that it believed the Korean company was copying the iPhone.
Boris Teksler said that Apple was shocked when it saw the first Galaxy phone that came from a company it considers a close partner.
“We didn’t understand how a trusted partner would build a copycat product like that,” Teksler testified, indicating that late CEO Steve Jobs and then COO Tim Cook spoke to Samsung about the issue.
Apple showed a presentation that Apple gave to Samsung in August 2010, showing what it believed were the Apple patents being infringed by Android’s application framework.
Even better:
Quote:
Jobs’ affinity for the inertial scrolling has been demonstrated over the years. In 2010, he told attendees at an AllThingsD conference about the rubber band effect and how it had spurred the creation of the iPhone. The Apple co-founder was also reported to have entered negotiations with Samsung in the same year, where he identified the patents that the Korean company was allegedly infringing upon and invited them to work out a deal, prior to the lawsuits we are witnessing today.
* And well worth perusing, Apple's presentation outlining the patents Apple believed Samsung infringed upon with its smartphones.
Quote:
Originally Posted by GTR
OMG YES. lol