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Apple Fined $837 Million For Infringing Wi-Fi Patents From The California Institute Of Technology


Apple, together with its close partner Broadcom have to pay a total of $1.1 Billion in fines for infringing three WIFI patents from the California Institute of Technology. This case has been on-going for years after the California Institute of Technology sued the two for allegedly infringing their patents on Wi-Fi data transmission.

The case was settled earlier today after about four years with the jury deciding that Apple will have to pay the University $837 million for infringement. Broadcom, on the other hand, must pay $270 million in damages.

Initially, the University had estimated that the patents would cost Apple about $1.40 per device and 26 cents each to Broadcom to license the Wi-Fi data transmission patents.

The court agreed that the infringed patents helped Apple stay competitive in the market by producing “smaller devices that give off less heat with longer-lasting batteries and improved Wi-Fi performance,” wrote Law360.

The interesting bit about the whole saga is that the co-inventor, Hui Jin, didn’t specifically think the patents created would be used for WIFI “until he heard Broadcom and Apple might be infringing them,” according to Apple and Broadcom’s lawyer.

Apple has, in the past, tried to prove itself innocent from the infringement lawsuit by arguing that it only used off-the-shelf Wi-Fi chips from Broadcom.

One of the jurors told the publication that they found Apple guilty of infringing the said patents but reportedly not on purpose as Caltech claimed when they filed the lawsuit in 2016.

“We just focused on the technology and how it compared to the product,” the juror told Law360.

In response to The Verge, Apple said it plans to appeal the court’s decision.

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Alvin Wanjala

Alvin Wanjala has been writing about technology for over 2 years. He writes about different topics in the consumer tech space. He loves streaming music, programming, and gaming during downtimes.

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