Apple found to have infringed two patents

A U.S. court has ruled that technology company Apple infringed two patents and ordered the company to pay approximately $5.72 billion in damages.

During the lawsuit, Taction Technology accused Apple of using its technology without authorization in the “Taptic Engine,” the haptic mechanism that provides vibration alerts on devices such as the iPhone and Apple Watch, CE Report quotes Anadolu Agency.

A jury at the U.S. District Court in San Diego found that Apple had infringed a total of three elements covered by the two patents. As a result, Taction was awarded $5.72 billion in damages.

Apple to appeal the ruling

Apple said it disagreed with the decision and would challenge it through legal channels. The company maintains that it did not use any technology belonging to Taction.

However, international legal experts and industry analysts note that enormous damages awarded against major technology companies are often significantly reduced during subsequent legal proceedings, particularly at the appeals stage, or the rulings are overturned entirely following legal and technical reviews.

Meanwhile, the jury that heard the case determined that Apple had not knowingly or willfully infringed the patents in question.

Under U.S. patent law, if the company had been found to have infringed the patents “willfully and maliciously,” punitive damages could have been increased by up to three times at the judge’s discretion. This could have pushed Apple’s total liability to approximately $17 billion, an unprecedented level.

The finding that the infringement was not willful is also considered an important legal advantage for Apple’s defense strategy during the appeals process.

Photo: Chat GPT