The past two years have seen a sudden spurt in the growth of smartphones; something that has caught the global mobile phone leader Nokia off-guard. In trying to keep up with fresh competition from the likes of Apple and RIM, Nokia has seen its smartphone market share drop from 41% to 35% in just the previous quarter.
This new order has seen the Finnish market leader report a loss of $886 million while Apple posted a profit of $1.67 billion in the same quarter. Perhaps, in a desperate move to even things out, Nokia has sought a 'Robin Hood'-like intervention of the courts to reduce this revenue gap.
In a recent lawsuit filed against Apple at the Federal District Court in Delaware, Nokia alleges that Apple's iPhone has been infringing on close to ten patents owned by Nokia that relate to GSM, UMTS and Wireless LAN standards. Further, Nokia claims that these patents have been licensed to over 40 companies worldwide which includes all the leading mobile handset manufacturers while Apple has chosen to "free ride" on these innovations all along.
According to the statement released on the Nokia website, Ilkka Rahnasto, Vice President, Legal & Intellectual Property at Nokia writes
"The basic principle in the mobile industry is that those companies who contribute in technology development to establish standards create intellectual property, which others then need to compensate for. Apple is also expected to follow this principle. By refusing to agree appropriate terms for Nokia's intellectual property, Apple is attempting to get a free ride on the back of Nokia's innovation."
What do these infringements amount to? According to an article on BrainStorm Tech, it could constitute 1% to 2% of the cost of an iPhone or up to $12 per iPhone. That's a massive number considering the volume of iPhones shipped till date. While it is not clear what has been the discussion between the two companies so far on this issue, we do see it more as an issue of settling on a licensing fee commensurate to the technology rather than a case of Apple choosing to take Nokia for a ride.
Coming as it is after a contrasting display over the past quarter, do you see Nokia's lawsuit as a face saving gesture or do you see value in this lawsuit. Please tell us in the comments.
[via Nokia, BrainStorm Tech]
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The damn phone has been out for over 2 years. They are obviously not aggressively enforcing the rights violations they are alleging after so much time. Legally they might be within the time frame, but we all know that companies wait years so that settlements will be higher than ever.
Yeah, i hope apple has to send a lot of money to sweden
Sweden??? Nokia are a Finnish Company
Nokia are clearly trying to reduce their reported loss!
and why didnt they see to this sooner?
what a buch of losers.
Okay, so what are the friggin patent infringements???? Stupidest article ever.
If you can't beat them, sue them.
So 15,000,000 * $12.00 = $180,000,000.00
Sad thing is Apple could afford this… But I'd bet they won't.
And yes, its a slow Friday for news.
Yes please give Apple a Kick in it's fat gob, it deserves it for unfairness I bet it would be doing the same to other company's if it had developed the technology.
Nokia are reeling from a serious drop in favour. Any loss of interest equals a drop in profits
nokia have taken serious lickings by the likes of Sony Ericsson and Samsung, now LG, RIM (blackberry) HTC etc have joined a domain that was Nokia's early territory
Nokia handsets seem to have been aimed directly at the business market by their 'off contract, hanset only' pricing.
Now, Nokia have released their own version of an app store and want a slice of a tasty pie, drawback being, they can't cook their own as their profits won't allow it.
Nokia is a dying breed in the mobile Market, people (well,me anyway) want 'New' offerings, not the same old same old menu system, boring looks and trying (still) to combine a second rate mp3 player with a crap phone (5800)
Nokia should retire gracefully from the mobile market, the newer breeds they can't catch up with will win
I loved my 8820 back then when it was fresh and new. Silver, sleek design. Unfortunately, things have changed and they need to adapt and innovate. The majority want more than what they've been able to offer. If apple did infringe on their patents, I'm sure a settlement will be made. Otherwise, it'd be a waste of time for both sides.
Just another non-issue……….
NOKIA is like an animal that has become to big and unable to walk on its own feet, simply it is stumbling over itself. Apple on the other side manages the concept of Small is beautiful" Not having the largest market share does not mean that you are not the greatest (just follow the Apple market share for starters and compare with Nokias over the last year)
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