Apple will have to pay $506 million to settle claims it infringed on a patent owned by the University of Wisconsin Madison’s patent licensing arm. The ruling by U.S District judge William Conley adds $272 million to a $234 million jury verdict in October 2015.
Court Ruling
The $506 million payout includes $1.61 in damages and $2.74 million in royalties for every unit that Apple might have sold containing the technology. The payment also includes court costs and post-judgment interest.
“WARF will continue to defend the work of the university researchers and WARF’s patent, in this case, should Apple, Inc. file an appeal,” said Jeanan Yasiri Moe WARF Spokeswoman in a statement
The judge in his ruling said Apple must pay the additional amount plus interest because it continued to infringe on the patent until it expired in 2016. The patent in question relates to computer processor technology used in A7 A8 and A8X chips.
The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation first sued the tech giant in 2014 alleging that processors used on the iPhone product line infringed on a patent describing a ‘predictor circuit’. The patent in question details a system in which a processor is able to predict instruction which a user may give. The patent was issued to the University’s computer science professor, Gurindar Sohi and his three students in 1998.
Apple Appeal
Apple on its defense maintains it did not infringe on any patents reiterating that the patents in question are invalid. The US Patent and Trademark Office has reportedly rejected the company’s request to review the patent’s validity. The iPhone maker plans to appeal the ruling according to court papers. The company, however, faces another legal headache as the university has also filed another lawsuit involving A9 chips.
Apple settlement adds to a list of tech companies that have found themselves on a collision course with WARF Patents. In 2003, the research foundation sued Sony Corp over claims it infringed on its patents, Samsung and IBM in 2004. It also sued Intel in 2008. All the four lawsuits have resulted in settlements.
Apple stock was down by 1.89% in Thursday’s trading session to end the day at $150.56 a share.
