Motorola Suit Dismissed Against Apple

By IAN SHERR, HARRIET TORRY And FRIEDRICH GEIGER

A German court Friday dismissed a patent-infringement suit brought by Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. against Apple Inc., following a bitter battle that at one point temporarily disrupted Apple's sales.

The German court dismissed Motorola's suit against Apple, a court representative said, clearing the iPhone maker of charges that it infringed a Motorola patent on mobile-communications technology.

Apple declined to comment on the decision. Motorola would say only that it plans to continue to "protect our intellectual property."

The ruling is the latest in a string of patent battles between the technology titans that has heightened concerns in high-tech circles about how companies litigate intellectual property. Lawyers and industry insiders alike noted that Motorola enforced an injunction against Apple in Germany over a patent that is considered essential to making wireless devices. As a result, Apple temporarily suspended sales of some iPhones and iPads on its German website until the injunction was lifted.

Patents that are made part of industry standards, such as some of those held by Motorola, Samsung Electronics Co. and others, are expected to be licensed under fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms, a commitment also known as Frand.

Apple, of Cupertino, Calif., has been outspoken about that issue lately, sending a letter to a European standards body asking for an overhaul of Frand agreements and a framework for how those patents are licensed. Among its recommendations, Apple said there should be an agreed-to base royalty as well as promises that companies won't seek or enforce injunctions against any competitor alleged to have infringed a Frand patent.

Cisco Systems Inc. has spoken out in support of Apple's recommendations, and Microsoft Corp. has made similar comments.

Google Inc., which struck a deal last year to acquire Motorola for $12.5 billion, sent a letter to dozens of European standards bodies saying it will maintain many of Motorola's practices and prices for Frand patents. But Google stopped short of promising it wouldn't use injunctions as part of its strategy. Though the U.S. Justice Department is expected to approve Google's takeover of Motorola, regulators in both Europe and the U.S. have expressed concern about Google's strategy.

The ruling in Germany represents a setback for Motorola, which Google said it is acquiring in part for its massive portfolio of thousands of patents.

An Apple spokesman declined to comment on the decision. Motorola didn't immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

The ruling follows two recent patent infringement wins for Motorola and a brief sales injunction against Apple in the same court, the latest development in a line of lawsuits being fought between major technology companies over mobile device patents in the U.S. and Europe.

Several companies are at loggerheads over the licensing of patents used in the lucrative smartphone market.

Google Inc. is currently seeking a $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility, which would give Google a powerful armory of technology patents.

via online.wsj.com