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Apple defends iOS developers from patent firm's licensing claims |
Listed in: News Tags: apple, lodsys
Some iOS developers came under fire last week from Lodsys, a patent licensing firm that has demanded licensing fees from iOS developers who have implemented in-app purchases in their software. The Texas-based company believes it deserves royalties since they hold a patent on the in-app purchase model.
Most iOS developers are small independent outfits who don't have the resources to fight a long patent-fueled legal battle. It seems they've found a friend in Apple itself, though. The company has sent Lodsys a letter asking it to refrain from trying to squeeze out money from the developers. In the letter, Apple argues out that Lodsys has no legal ground to make any infringement claims.
"As Lodsys itself advertises on its website, 'Apple is licensed for its nameplate products and services'," reads part of the letter from Apple's senior VP and legal counsel, Bruce Sewell. "Under its license, Apple is entitled to offer these licensed products and services to its customers and business partners, who, in turn, have the right to use them.
"The technology that is targeted in your notice letters is technology that Apple is expressly licensed under the Lodsys patents to offer to Apple’s App Makers. These licensed products and services enable Apple’s App Makers to communicate with end users through the use of Apple’s own licensed hardware, software, APIs, memory, servers, and interfaces, including Apple’s App Store.
"Because Apple is licensed under Lodsys’ patents to offer such technology to its App Makers, the App Makers are entitled to use this technology free from any infringement claims by Lodsys."
Although Apple has yet to explicitly state whether or not it will defend the affected iOS developers in court, the letter does stress that the company "is fully prepared to defend Apple’s license rights." iOS developers, meanwhile, have expressed relief after Apple sent out the letter.
"I am extremely relieved that Apple has stood up for its developers against these patently unfair claims by Lodsys," TLA Systems' James Thomson told Macworld. “I always believed they would, but it’s a huge weight off my shoulders to see it written in black and white. The last ten days have been some of the most stressful of my professional career, and I’d just like to say thanks to Apple and all our customers and friends who have been highly supportive of us during this time."
Via [Macworld]
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Lodsys has no case. By claiming the devs have no license rights to the in-app tech lodsys extends that claim against apple who, in fact, does have license rights to the in-app tech (and since the devs are apple's business partners they are thereby granted use of lodsys' in-app tech by extension under the license).
So lodsys' real case would have to be against apple's right to allow it's devs to use the in-app tech without a usage charge to filters back to lodsys through apple (which apple is legally entitled to do under it's license agreement with lodsys).
Basically, lodsys cut a bad deal with apple, realized it and is now trying futilely to frighten apple's partners into paying unwarranted settlements.
Lodsys' legal = dumb
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