The U.S. Court of Appeals has ruled in Apple's favor saying the tech giant did not infringe a Google-owned Motorola Mobility's patent in the development of its popular iPhone.
Apple has mostly been up against Samsung when it comes to courtroom battles. But the Cupertino-based tech giant has had some run-ins with the biggest mobile OS Company, Google. Initially it started off with Motorola, Google took over the dispute with Apple when the web giant acquired Moto X maker in 2010. Motorola accused Apple of infringing six different patents in 2010, which include functions like reducing signal noise and stopping the device's touch screen from being activated while talking on a phone.
The first case was filed by Motorola in 2010 before the US International Trade Commission (ITC). In April 2013, the commission decided that Apple did not infringe any of Motorola's patents. By the time the case reached its ruling, Google had acquired these patents and appealed ITC's decision.
Unfortunately for Google, the U.S. Court of Appeals also upheld ITC's ruling from April 2013, dismissing the case in favor of Apple. The U.S. Appeals Court addressed only one of the six patents.
"We're disappointed in this decision and are evaluating our options," Google said in a statement to Reuters. Apple did not comment on the decision.
Google is likely to ask all the active judges in the court to review the decision and further escalate it till the Supreme Court.
Apple has been active in the courts with several wins against the South Korean tech giant Samsung. Apple has been awarded $930 million by the courts over its long-running patent battle with Samsung. To initiate some agreements in the Samsung-Apple rivalry, CEOs from both companies agreed on a mediation session in February. The outcome of the meeting will decide if the legal battle finally ceases or the war continues in future court trials.
