The jury presiding over the Apple vs Samsung trial in a US court has just reached a verdict. We were thinking this trial would last several weeks or even months and to everyone’s surprise the jury announced the verdict just minutes ago. Pretty bad news from Samsung has it has been found to infringe several patents owned by Apple. Samsung must pay Apple $1 billion, 51 million 855 thousand dollars $1051855000 . That is about Rs.5828.33 crores or five thousand odd crores of rupees in damages to just give you an idea about the magnitude of the verdict.Apple had accused Samsung of copying the iPhone and iPad and claimed over $2.5 billion in damages after talks between the two companies which are the largest mobile phone companies in the world did not seem to be fruitful. Judge Lucy Koh who is a US District Judge handling this trial had even requested the CEO’s of the two companies to meet and try to reach an agreement but even then talks failed. We are still waiting for details regarding the verdict and damages.
Here is an official statement from Apple regarding the verdict on NYT
We are grateful to the jury for their service and for investing the time to listen to our story and we were thrilled to be able to finally tell it. The mountain of evidence presented during the trail showed that Samsung’s copying went far deeper than even we knew. The lawsuits between Apple and Samsung were about much more than patents or money. They were about values. At Apple, we value originality and innovation and pour our lives into making the best products on earth. We make these products to delight our customers, not for our competitors to flagrantly copy. We applaud the court for finding Samsung’s behavior willful and for sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn’t right.
Here is an official statement from Samsung regarding the verdict on TheVerge
Today’s verdict should not be viewed as a win for Apple, but as a loss for the American consumer. It will lead to fewer choices, less innovation, and potentially higher prices. It is unfortunate that patent law can be manipulated to give one company a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners, or technology that is being improved every day by Samsung and other companies. Consumers have the right to choices, and they know what they are buying when they purchase Samsung products. This is not the final word in this case or in battles being waged in courts and tribunals around the world, some of which have already rejected many of Apple’s claims. Samsung will continue to innovate and offer choices for the consumer.
What do you think about the verdict ? Did the Samsung Galaxy S look like the iPhone ?