Apple has been asked to whopping USD 308.5 million for infringing a patent. The tech giant has been asked to pay the amount to Personalized Media Communications LLC (PMC). The decision is related to the digital rights management of the company. The company has been directed by the jurors to pay a running royalty to it. The royalty is usually based on the sales of a service or product. Personalized Media Communications is a licensing firm and had sued Apple in 2015. The firm alleged that iTunes of the tech giant infringed seven of its patents.
Apple had challenged the case filed by the PMC at a patent office in the United States. But in March last year, an appeals court paved the way for the trial by reversing the decision. The iPhone has not immediately commented on the development. However, Apple told a media organization that it was disappointed by the ruling. The company is reportedly planning to appeal against the ruling. The tech giant said that cases like these not only stifle innovation but also harm consumers. “It is very discouraging. When companies like these, which neither make nor sell any products file cases, it ultimately harms consumers. This needs to be checked for the overall benefit of our consumers,” Apple was quoted as saying in a report.
It is worth mentioning that Texas-based Personalized Media Communications has an infringement case pending against several other companies. These companies include Google, Netflix, and even Amazon. Earlier in January last year, Apple and Broadcom were ordered to pay USD 1.1 billion for infringing patents on Wi-Fi technology of the California Institute of Technology. According to lawyers for CalTech, Apple had to pay USD 837.8 million. Broadcom was ordered to pay USD 270 million. These technology companies were sued over a range of patents. These patents were related to wireless data transmissions. Reports suggest that it was the sixth-largest patent verdict ever.
