Nokia gets ITC review of two of five patent claims vs. Apple
updated 11:10 pm EDT, Thu May 26, 2011
Nokia has ITC review two patent issues
Nokia won a minor reprieve Thursday after the US International Trade Commission agreed to review two of the five patent claims against Apple that were tossed out in March. The patents would be reexamined to verify the meanings of particular terms. Nokia is hoping to bring the two patents back into play and use a threatened ITC ban of related Apple products to force a settlement of a matching lawsuit.
The patents alternately cover the preservation of wireless antenna and speaker quality in the small space of a phone as well as optimizing the footprint and power consumption of a phone camera.
A win for either side won't necessarily end the ongoing, mutual lawsuits and ITC complaints between the companies, which involve at least 32 more patents. Nokia also filed more ITC disputes after losing in March in a symbolic attempt to maintain pressure.
The fight originally began in October 2009 when Nokia sued Apple over 3G patents. The Finnish phone designer believes it owns key technology behind UMTS-based wireless and faced Apple as one of the few who challenged its point of view. Apple's original countersuit not only said Nokia was copying the iPhone but that the 3G royalty push was really an attempt to take iPhone technology by negotiating a cross-licensing agreement.
