Slide-to-unlock Patent
A U.S. court has reinstated its earlier decision that Samsung had infringed on Apple’s famous slide-to-unlock patent in the third trial.
Judge Kimberly Moore from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C. said on October 7 (local time), “There was substantial evidence related to Samsung's infringement of Apple’s three patents. The court will annul the earlier judgment in the appellate trial which sided with Samsung.”
The three patents include the 721 slide-to-unlock patent, the 647 quick links patent, which automatically turn information like addresses and phone numbers into links, and the 172 autocorrect patent.
In February 2012, Apple filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Samsung, making accusations that the competitor violated its patents including the slide-to-unlock feature. Apple demanded that Samsung pay US$119.6 million (133.31 billion won) for the patent infringement.
Apple won the case at the first trial held in May 2014. However, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed the earlier jury decision in this February, saying Samsung had not infringed on Apple’s patents. Then, Samsung lost the case at the third trial on the 7th again.
As the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit deals with all cases related to patents in the U.S., the latest decision is expected to affect all courts in the nation when making a judgment as well as the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).