Netherlands court gives Apple win over Samsung in scrolling patent case
A court in the Netherlands has ruled in favor of Apple in their suit against Samsung for infringement on patent EP2.059.868. The patent in question pertains to a method of scrolling implemented in the gallery application of Samsung devices running one of several Android 2.0 branches covering the Froyo and Gingerbread releases.
Samsung now has eight weeks to provide updates to their handsets to fix the infringing software. If they fail to do so, the Korean smartphone maker faces fines of 100,000 euros per day and potential sales bans. Samsung issued a statement saying they were “disappointed” in the decision and once again chiding Apple for hampering “consumer choice and innovation.”
In the end, the ruling could cost Samsung a pretty penny, especially considering the number of Android devices they will need to provide updates to, but it won’t make as big an impact on the company’s wallet as another high-profile case. The next phase of the US patent trial in which Samsung has already been slapped with a $1 billion fine kicks off next week.
[via SamMobile]