Post on 15-Jan-2016
description
Dr. Tal Lavian
http://cs.berkeley.edu/~tlaviantlavian@cs.berkeley.edu
UC Berkeley Engineering, CET
Wireless Mobile Devices: The Smartphone Patent War
Learn to view things within an IP framework:Recognize inventions Be able to detect and avoid infringementDistinguish confidential information from general
knowledgePreserve confidentiality
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Last Week: Recognizing Intellectual Property
Last Week: Characteristics of Wireless Mobile Devices
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Wireless Limited bandwidth, high latency Variable link quality (noise, disconnections, other users) Heterogeneous air interfaces
Mobility: User and terminal location dynamically changes Speed of terminal mobility impacts wireless bandwidth
Portability Limited battery capacity, computing and storage Small dimensions
More Signal Processing
More Protocol Processing
Higher Energy Efficiency
Last Week: Evolution of Cellular System
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First generation: Analog – Voice Analog modulation, cellular
phone (AMPS) with manual roaming
Second Generation: Digital Voice & Data Digital modulation Cellular
and PCS phones with seamless roaming, integrated paging
Third Generation (3G): Digital Multimedia Unified digital access, voice,
data, video music, gaming, m-commerce, sensor etc.
BSC
BSC
MSC
MSC
VLR
HLR
PSTN
OMC
AuC
EIR
This Week: Smartphone Patent War
We will take an in-depth look at the many different battles comprising the patent war, including Who’s suing who Over what technology And for what possible reasons
We will also discuss alternatives to litigation, such as licensing IP
Smartphones – what are they? 6
• Small size, light weight, easily fitting in palm and pocket
• Display screen with touch input and small virtual key board
• Also known as portable handheld device or handheld device (e.g. Smartphone, PDAs etc.)
Device Architecture7
Smartphone is a radical technology change with a lot of money at stake and growing.
Source: http://www.project-disco.org/intellectual-property/one-in-six-active-u-s-patents-pertain-to-the-smartphone/
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Smartphone Patents Are Valuable
• Smartphone is a radical technology change with a lot of money at stake and growing.
• Patent war is a major tool to slow down the competition and get better market share• Very large business…and growing• Apple, Google, Motorola, LG, HTC, Microsoft,
Nokia….• Extremely expansive litigation, with a lot of risk• Time is critical - slowing down the competitors
Smartphone Patents Are Valuable
Smartphone Patent War Overview
Similar to the GSM patent war of the 1990s, there is currently a patent war stirring up the mobile telecommunications market
Major actors include Apple, Microsoft, Google, HTC, LG, Samsung, Motorola, Nokia, (Oracle,) and others
Great example of companies leveraging their IP to obtain a competitive edge
Wireless Devices Relevant Technologies
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Smartphone designse.g., Tab
Wireless Devices Relevant Technologies (cont.)
Operating systems e.g., Microsoft Barnes and Noble over Android in Nook
ebook reader Patents involved:
• #5, 778, 372 – “Remote retrieval and display management of electronic document with incorporated images.”
• #6, 339, 780 – “Loading status in a hypermedia browser having a limited available display area.”
• #5, 889, 522 – “System provided child window controls.” Microsoft also involved in many licensing deals with
OEMs Means of avoiding litigation for both
parties (otherwise Microsoft would assert software patent rights in court)
Smartphone Patent War –When Did It Begin?
Patent litigation concerning smartphone technology began in late 2009 Nokia sued Apple over 10 patents Apple countersued Nokia for infringement of 13 patents
Notice the “eye for an eye” mentality in patent litigation
Nokia-Apple litigation quickly expanded from district courts to the International Trade Commission Also opened the door for other companies to sue
competitors for smartphone patent infringement “Opening salvo”
Smartphone Patent War – Who’s Involved
•Apple vs. HTC: 20 software patents
•ELAN vs. Apple: touchscreen patents
•Oracle vs. Google: Java patents
•Qualcomm vs. Nokia: 3G tech.
•Apple vs. Nokia: data and speech coding
•Nokia vs. Apple: 2G, 3G and Wi-Fi tech.
•This list is not exhaustive
Smartphone Patent War – Who’s Involved (cont.)
Smartphone patent war also includes actors not directly involved with the smartphone industry Kodak
First attempted to assert patent rights in court in order to raise capital from licensing to smartphone manufacturers Eventually sought to sell patents to avoid bankruptcy
Some think litigation was actually a means of marketing their patent portfolio
Non-Practicing Entities (NPE) i.e., companies that assert patent rights but do not make the
inventions they own the patents for themselves
Smartphone Patent War –Different Actors, Different Motivations
Motivations for resorting to patent litigation are often multi-pronged: Principle – patents rights have been infringed, not
going to tolerate it e.g., Apple suing Samsung over iPad design infringement
Damages – plaintiffs in patent cases can recoup profits lost due to infringement, sometimes treble (3x) damages if judge finds willful infringement
Smartphone Patent War –Different Actors, Different Motivations
(cont.)
Injunction – if product found to infringe, court can order injunction against manufacturer Essentially, a mandate to stop producing
the infringing product e.g., Apple sued Samsung over Galaxy Tab
in Germany, won an injunction that forbade Samsung marketing it
Licensing – sometimes if a competitor wants to use your IP, you let them pay you to do it This has largely been Microsoft’s strategy throughout the
patent war Arguably mutually beneficial: one side gets access to
competitor’s IP, while competitor need not manufacture to profit from IP.
Smartphone Patent War – Jurisdictions
The smartphone patent war is a global span of litigation taking place in various courts, including: U.S. district courts
Most patent cases in the United States are heard in Eastern district of TexasDelawareNorthern district of California
European and Asian courts Most often with the aim to win an injunction in a
foreign market
Smartphone Patent War – Jurisdictions (cont.)
International Trade Commission (ITC) Quasi-legal venue where many patent cases are
heard Two reasons plaintiffs often file complaints to
the ITC:While not having the ability to award
damages, it can grant injunctionsSpeed – proceedings are usually
much faster than in district or appellate courts
http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/itc-judge-apple-did-not-violate-any-samsung-patents
Smartphone Patent War – Questions To Ask
Are there more mutually profitable alternatives to “patent wars”?
Cross-licensing? Patent pools?
What effect does such litigations have on consumers? the market? innovation?
When will it be “over”? Bankruptcy? Product bans?
Summary
Value of smartphones and related tech to developing market
The smartphone patent war: Began with Nokia and Apple in 2009 All players involved Global courts, Texas, Delaware, California… and the
ITC
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