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iPhone may face another lawsuit

21 February 2007 16:55 by James "Dela" Delahunty | 7 comments

With a lawsuit brought against it by Cisco Systems pending, Apple Computer Inc. may also have to face another lawsuit from Quantum Research over technology used in the iPhone product. QR claims that from what is known about the iPhone already, it infringes on two patents held by the company. The first covers the touch sensitive technology used by the iPhone and the second covers the near-field proximity sensor that detects if the device is against a persons face.

Quantum Research has not filed any formal complaint, but it is eagerly awaiting to check the iPhone when it is finally released. "The description of the iPhone suggests it uses a rear-surface touch screen, and has proximity sensing which can tell if it is held to the ear. That's a QR capability," said Duncan Bryan, Quantum Research's licensing director.

Quantum Research actually already sells chips to Apple that cover some of the features offered by the iPhone. A lawsuit filed against Apple by Cisco Systems contests Apple's use of the iPhone trademark, which belongs to Cisco and has even been used with several products already. Cisco had extended time for negotiations between the companies until today.

Source:
DailyTech

Permalink to this article

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Cisco sues Apple over iPhone (10 January 2007)

Apple officially announces iPhone (9 January 2007)

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Discuss this article!
mattpat (Newbie) 21 February 2007 17:53
Actually, Apple and Cisco just settled: http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2007/02/21iphone.html [ + quote]
Dela (Staff Member) 21 February 2007 19:08
yep, just added that [ + quote]
dioioib (Newbie) 22 February 2007 15:19
I can't believe how much Apple has to go through to launch an innovative product. Law Suit after Law Suit its just ridiculous. [ + quote]
mattpat (Newbie) 22 February 2007 15:23
Originally posted by dioioib: I can't believe how much Apple has to go through to launch an innovative product. Law Suit after Law Suit its just ridiculous. Yeah, it is, but Apple wouldn't have gone through the trouble if they weren't confident they could win any lawsuits that arose. [ + quote]
v965hdss (Newbie) 23 February 2007 1:51
Maybe Apple will one day develope something of their own and not copy other peoples ideas. [ + quote]
dcmorrow (Junior Member) 23 February 2007 6:40
That's the point. If Apple didn't do it, no one else would. They came out with the Newton they came out with the Mac, they started using USB. The technology was always there, but no one wants to use it until Apple says, let's do this and it happens. Then, Everyone wants to do it. Apple takes tech from GEEK to SHEEK and brings it to the people. Everything Apple has done was already there, but no one believed in it. Apple has been an off the shelf company from the beginning. So Xerox develops the mouse and gui, desktop icons, wysiwyg, desktop publishing. They set it aside. Apple simplifies it, markets it, and sells it. Apple is the natural distributer of iPhone (name). Other companies predict it's marketability and squat on the name. The first company couldn't afford to hold on to it and sells the name to Cisco, who squats for years on the name. Then when Apple decides to move forward they are a bit stuck, they have a case and Cisco has a case they mutually agree. The iPhone tech is irrelevant until Jobs or his team say, "oh it's got to do this or that." Someone says hey there's this chip that can sense heat or flesh. The chip comes from QR and Apple buys it. But apparently buying the chip doesn't automatically give you a right to use it. QR probably didn't think, "Hey we can make a phone out of this." Or we can make a phone but we don't have an OS so we will sit on it. If it wasn't for Apple, you wouldn't have an iPhone, or any device like it. And because of legal, there won't be another company that would care to develop such a phone. It's sickening to think we live in a world that can do so much but everyone is afraid to anything because someone is always waiting to slap them for trying. There needs to be reform. [ + quote]
Gidgid (Newbie) 24 February 2007 14:45
dcmorrow, I totally agree with everything you said. Originally posted by dcmorrow: There needs to be reform. Especially that. [ + quote]