Motorola sues Apple for 18 alleged patent infringements
Motorola is the latest company to file a patent lawsuit against Apple, suggesting in court that Apple has infringed on proprietary Motorola technologies in its mobile devices. Motorola itself filed papers about 18 different infringements. Its subsidiary Motorola Mobility Inc filed three more, as well as a trade complaint regarding technologies including a system to distribute message traffic and various systems like that.Truth be told, this is all pretty esoteric -- Microsoft just recently sued Motorola for the same type of thing, and technology patents are often so vague and far-reaching that I suspect none of this is ever meant to actually reach court. Apple's lawyers will determine what the settlement should be (and Apple will probably pay it), and Motorola might even use that money to pay off Microsoft. It's possible that this could blow up into a bigger argument (depending on what Motorola wants to get out of this), but at this point, it all just seems more like corporate posturing than anything else.
So instead, let's all take this time to remember Motorola and Apple's disastrous collaboration, the Rokr, and what a mess all of that was. Man, it's hard to believe just how terrible cell phones were before the iPhone came along.
[via Slashdot]
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Motorola is the latest company to file a patent lawsuit against Apple, suggesting in court that Apple has infringed on proprietary Motorola...
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My Motorola StarTAC was a beast. It had a calculator on it's two line display as well. But most importantly, I could count the number of dropped calls on one hand.
October 13 2010 at 3:35 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI wouldn't say cell phones were "terrible". They served their basic function, but they weren't exactly exciting. iPhone drastically changed the cell phone market.
October 13 2010 at 11:34 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyBefore the iPhone came along I remember saying to people that despite all the new phones coming out they were all the same and that there was no innovation at all. It was the same old, same old, phones being churned out with different colours and slightly different shaped buttons. I remember all too clearly. Manufacturers all had the sheep mentality (sorry sheep) in fear of their shareholders to do anything different. Despite using many models of them I new they were clunky back then and I still do.
October 13 2010 at 2:56 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyNokia made some decent non-smart phones. Motorola phones were abominations, the Al Roker included. Lucky Goldstar made some absolutely horrendous examples.
October 12 2010 at 9:02 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyCell phones weren't terrible. I loved my Nokia 3310. It called, texted, and I could throw it against the wall. The case would come off, but it would still work. After 5 years, it finally succumbed to a dip in the sink. Amazing piece of hardware.
October 12 2010 at 7:54 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyUhhh, no. Cell phones were terrible.
We all know you're an Apple fanboy desperate to set yourself apart, so as well as buying everything Apple, you like to complain a lot and be a 'critic'.
Stop thinking a cell phone is just a phone. It isn't. And hasn't been since 1992.
How many more week old stories are going to be posted on TUAW today?
October 12 2010 at 7:30 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyYou're sitting there all day reading week-old stories on TUAW? Then commenting on them?
Not much going on in your life today, eh?
Everyone is violating everyone's patents in mobile. I guess we'll just have to wait 5 years and see how it pans out.
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TUAW (or The Unofficial Apple Weblog) is a website devoted to tips, reviews, news, analysis and opinion on everything Apple.
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