In one fell swoop this week, Apple makes Motorola an offer they can't refuse, changes the dynamics of several long-contested patent cases, and possibly gives Google cause to second-guess a pending blockbuster deal. It's not personal, it's only business as usual in the ever changing world of patent lawsuits.
So take the cannoli and cue the dun-dun; it's time for another week of Law & Apple.
Earlier this month, Motorola won a permanent injunction against Apple that led to the removal of some Apple products from German online stores. The patents used in that case appeared to have some leverage over Apple, and are part of the reason Google is laying down $12.5 billion to buy Motorola. Bloomberg, however, is reporting that Apple won a major court ruling in Germany a few days ago blocking the enforcement of the Motorola injunction, and now the value of those patents is perhaps not what Google originally thought.
The technology in question is considered to be a standard essential patent that includes technology Motorola must make available to competitors at a fair price. Motorola originally won the injunction because Apple offered terms that the German court decided were not sufficient. So Apple simply appealed with revised licensing terms; based on the new terms, the court ruled that Motorola can’t enforce the injunction during the appeal, and that Motorola would "violate its duties" if it doesn’t accept the new offer.
Motorola... you can have my offer now, if you like.
For its part, Motorola is claiming the ruling as a victory. According to a Motorola spokesperson, the company's "determination to collect fair compensation for Apple's use of MMI's patented technology has now been vindicated by the Appellate Court's decision." In other words, Motorola is about to get paid, and that was really all it wanted anyway.
Motorola may believe it possible to squeeze more out of the deal and could choose to fight the appeal to reinstate the injunction; in that case, Cupertino could just re-appeal with additional concessions to Motorola. Eventually, Apple’s appeal will likely succeed, its products will remain for sale, Motorola will get paid, and Google might be left wondering what exactly it is writing such a big check for, anyway.
Adrian writes the weekly Law & Apple column for MacLife.com. Follow him on Twitter, or subscribe to him on Facebook.
