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| Both Apple and Broadcom indicated they planned to appeal the verdict finding they infringed on a California university's patent (AFP Photo/Loic VENANCE, JUSTIN SULLIVAN) |
Los Angeles (AFP) - A Los Angeles jury on Wednesday ordered Apple and Broadcom to pay $1.1 billion to a California university for infringing wifi technology patents in what is thought to be one of the largest patent verdicts ever.
Apple was
ordered to pay $837 million and Broadcom must pay $270 million to the
California Institute of Technology.
Caltech had
sued both tech giants in 2016, alleging that Apple products including iPhones,
iPads and Apple Watches used Broadcom components that infringed on its patents
related to wireless data transmissions.
While
Broadcom made the chips at issue in the trial, jurors may have hit Apple with a
bigger tab by because it makes billions of dollars selling iPhones and other
devices that incorporate the technology.
"Think
of the patented technology as a piece of property that was stolen and sold to
someone else," said analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group.
"It
doesn't matter if they had a go-between steal it for them, they were not
allowed to benefit from a theft even if they were downstream."
Tangled
past
The
analyst, who did not attend the trial, wondered whether an Apple relationship
with Broadcom strengthened years ago during legal brawling with US chip giant
Qualcomm played into the jury's decision.
Some
industry insiders believe Apple supported Broadcom's failed bid to buy Qualcomm
in a hostile takeover campaign.
Broadcom in
2018 abandoned efforts to take over US smartphone chipmaker Qualcomm after its
bid was blocked by President Donald Trump over national security concerns.
Qualcomm
had rejected the unsolicited offer from Broadcom, which makes an array of chips
for wireless communications, set-top boxes and electronic displays.
Broadcom
last year moved its headquarters from Singapore to California.
Meanwhile,
Apple and Qualcomm agreed in early 2019 to "dismiss all litigation"
against each other worldwide in what had been a sprawling battle over royalty
payments.
Repercussions?
Both Apple
and Broadcom planned to appeal the verdict.
"While
we thank the members of the jury for their service, we disagree with the
factual and legal bases for the verdict and intend to appeal," Broadcom
said in response to an AFP inquiry.
In court
documents, Apple and Broadcom had said Caltech's claims "are based solely
on the incorporation of allegedly infringing Broadcom chips in Apple's iPhone,
Mac, and other devices."
"Broadcom
manufactures the accused chips, while Apple is merely an indirect downstream
party whose products incorporate the accused chips," court filings argued.
Broadcom
was the main target of the lawsuit but Apple was also named as it is one of
Broadcom's biggest customers.
Caltech
welcomed the ruling.
"As a
nonprofit institution of higher education, Caltech is committed to protecting
its intellectual property in furtherance of its mission to expand human
knowledge and benefit society through research integrated with education,"
the institute said.
Analyst
Enderle expected repercussions from the ruling to go beyond Apple to other
Broadcom customers who used the chips at issue.
"Caltech
will go down the list of Broadcom customers and look for out-of-court
settlements with anyone who used the compromised technology," Enderle
said.
The analyst
wondered whether the jury award signaled a new onslaught of patent battles in
the tech industry.
"Typically,
we go through waves of patent wars," Enderle said.
"I
think it's a case where, after a period of time, people age out or forget that
there are significant penalties for this stuff."
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