A group of US IT firms has formed a coalition in support of Samsung in its long-running patent battles with Apple. Dell, Facebook. Google and HP are among eight firms which have submitted an amicus brief to the US Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, which is currently hearing Samsung’s complaints regarding the damages that the Korean company was ordered to pay in its litigation battle with Apple.
The ‘friends of the court’ submitted their message supporting Samsung’s appeal over the multiple award of damages. Their submission related to a particular case where a jury agreed that Samsung had infringed patents covering a portion of the iPhone’s outer shell and one GUI screen. However, as the inner components of Samsung’s smartphones were not sold separately from the outer, Samsung was ordered to pay the profits on the entire device to Apple.
The coalition claimed that if allowed to stand, the decision would 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.
The appeal is continuing.
