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The jury did not recommend awarding
Samsung any money in its counterclaims that Apple had violated some of its
patents. The judge and lawyers from both Apple and Samsung continued to discuss
the jury forms late Friday afternoon.
"This is a huge win for
Apple," Mark
Lemley, a Stanford law professor, said over e-mail. The award "is just
large enough to make it the largest surviving patent verdict in history."
In aftermarket trading, Apple stock
jumped more than $12 a share, to more than $675 a share.
Samsung said the verdict should be
viewed "as a loss for the American consumer."
"It will lead to fewer choices,
less innovation, and potentially higher prices," the company said in a
written statement. "It is unfortunate that patent law can be manipulated
to give one company a monopoly over rectangles with rounded corners, or
technology that is being improved every day by Samsung and other companies.
"Consumers have the right to
choices, and they
know what they are buying when they purchase Samsung
products. This is not the final word in this case or in battles being waged in
courts and tribunals around the world, some of which have already rejected many
of Apple's claims. Samsung will continue to innovate and offer choices for the
consumer."
Apple praised the court for
"sending a loud and clear message that stealing isn't right."
"The mountain of evidence
presented during the trial showed that Samsung's copying went far deeper than
even we knew," the company said in a statement.
An issue still to be decided is
whether to grant injunctions that could prevent Samsung from selling products
that infringe on Apple's patents. Koh wanted both sides to be ready for a
hearing on the matter in two weeks, but Samsung's team argued that wasn't
enough time. A hearing then was scheduled for September 20.
Apple had asked for $2.7 billion in
damages, claiming that Samsung "ripped off" its iPad and iPhone
designs. Samsung countersued Apple for infringing on five of its patents and
asked for $519 million.
A nine-person jury spent just two
and a half days puzzling out its final verdict, with weeks of notes and
memories of testimony, 109 pages of jury instructions, and boxes of evidence
including a collection of contested smartphones and tablets as their guide.
The jurors had to complete a
complicated 20-page verdict form filled with charts and yes or no answers to
suss out exactly which device violated what patents and which companies were
responsible. Finally, they had to do the calculations to determine the final
damages amounts.
Each side was given 30 minutes to go
over the form and search for inconsistencies. Judge Koh and Samsung spotted a
problem with the damages amount for a Galaxy Tab model. After being sent back
to the jury for reconsideration, the total amount of damages was bumped down by
about $2.5 million, to $1,049,343,540.
After the trial was over, all nine
jurors opted to leave through a back door of the courthouse to avoid speaking
with the mass of reporters waiting at the front entrance.
The lawsuit is the largest yet in
the ongoing worldwide patent brawl between the two companies, which itself is
just one battle in Apple's war against Google's Android mobile operating
system. On August 24, a South Korean court found that both parties had
infringed on each other's patents, banning the sale of the iPhone 3GS, iPhone
4, two iPad models and Samsung's Galaxy S2.
The Korean court ordered Apple to
pay Samsung $35,000 and Samsung to pay Apple $22,000.
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