The final stage is set for Samsung’s appeal of a lower court decision that saw the South Korean firm ordered to pay $548 million to Apple as a result of their nearly five-year-old patent infringement trial.
Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) paid Apple Inc (AAPL.O) more than $548 million in December related to a jury verdict from 2012. It is seeking to pare back the $399 million of that amount that was awarded for infringing on the designs of the iPhone’s rounded-corner front face, bezel and colorful grid of icons, saying they contributed only marginally to a complex device.
Samsung plans to appeal what it says are “excessive penalties” applied for allegedly copying patented designs used in the iPhone. Copied, according to the jury verdict, was the smartphone’s rounded rectangular bezel, as well as the grid of icons.
“A patented design might be the essential feature of a spoon or rug. But the same is not true of smartphones, which contain countless other features that give them remarkable functionality wholly unrelated to their design,” Samsung said.
While Samsung has already paid the $548 million settlement to Apple, it can collect a refund if the original judgement is reversed or modified by the high court. Apple, for its part, alleges Samsung is raising issues that do not “deserve review” in an effort to prolong court proceedings.
