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Silicon Valley sides with Samsung in anti-Apple patent war

Fruity firm's litigation is ruining tech innovation, apparently

A coalition of Silicon Valley giants has submitted an amicus brief to a court hearing an appeal from Samsung in its ongoing patent dispute with Apple, offering support to the South Korean conglomerate.

The friends of the court submitted their message to the US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, currently hearing Samsung's complaints regarding damages awarded, supporting Samsung’s appeal over damages awarded to Apple.

The coalition is composed of the following companies:

  • Dell
  • eBay
  • Facebook
  • Google
  • Hewlett-Packard
  • Limelight Networks
  • Newegg
  • SAS Institute

The ongoing patent wars between Apple and Samsung have seen the South Koreans appeal multiple award of damages to Apple. Samsung has mostly been found responsible for patent infringements which have occurred in minor design features.

In this particular case a jury agreed that there were three particular design patent infringements. These related to a portion of the iPhone's outer shell and one GUI screen.

However, as the innards of Samsung's smartphones were not sold separately from their shells, they required Samsung to pay the profits on the entirety of their devices to Apple.

The coalition claimed that "If allowed to stand, that decision will lead to absurd results and have a devastating impact on companies who spend billions of dollars annually on research and development for complex technologies and their components."

Apple has reportedly argued the court should ignore the coalition's contribution, and that Google's involvement in particular – due to its own ongoing patent troubles, and Android's connection with Samsung phones – should be dismissed. The appeal is ongoing. ®

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