Apple is facing a new lawsuit filed by Qualcomm as the chip manufacturer announced today that the Cupertino giant has violated six of patents that it allegedly used for iPhone. Qualcomm is asking US trade regulators to stop Apple from selling the iPhone.
In a new set of legal battle, Qualcomm alleged Apple of infringing six of its patents that include a technology to improve battery life of the device. Qualcomm is clear and outright with its demands to make the defendant pay for damages.
Qualcomm's executive vice president and general counsel Don Rosenberg said in a statement that "Apple continues to use Qualcomm's technology while refusing to pay for it." The San Diego firm filed the case at the US International Trade Commission and US District Court for the Southern District of California, seeking damages and injunctive relief.
Qualcomm also wants the regulators to look into which iPhone models use cellular processors from rival chipmakers and stop the sales of these variants if found overstepping its intellectual properties. Qualcomm did not quantify how many of these iPhone models are particularly using their technology.
Apple reiterated its stance over this matter similar to what it said before in Qualcomm's first suit for patent violation. "We believe deeply in the value of intellectual property but we shouldn't have to pay them for technology breakthroughs they have nothing to do with," says Apple. "We've always been willing to pay a fair rate for standard technology used in our products and since they've refused to negotiate reasonable terms we're asking the courts for help."
In January, Apple filed a lawsuit against Qualcomm for approximately US$1 billion, alleging that chip supplier has been demanding for fees for technologies that are not theirs.
The Federal Trade Commission has been probing Qualcomm for supposedly using its exclusive relationship with Apple to undermine rivals from growing. In response, Qualcomm said that this claim is built under "a lack of economic support" and "flawed legal theory".
These cases are only some of Apple's involvements in several legal battles.
