Federal Jury Rules Apple Infringed on University of Wisconsin Patent

By Jack Nicas 

A federal jury ruled Apple Inc. infringed on a University of Wisconsin patent when developing processors for some recent iPhones and iPads, the latest in a string of disputes over the technology undergirding smartphones.

The jury in U.S. District Court in Madison, Wis., found that the university's 1998 patent on improving efficiency in computer processors is valid and that Apple illegally incorporated the patent's technology in processors that help power some iPhones and iPads.

The jury hasn't yet ruled on damages. Reuters reported U.S. District Judge William Conley recently ruled Apple could be liable for as much as $862.4 million.

Apple and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, the university's licensing arm and plaintiff in the case, didn't respond to requests for comment.

In court documents, Apple said the patent was invalid and that it didn't infringe on it.

The foundation sued Apple in January 2014. The group sued Apple again last month for infringing on the patent in more recent processors; that case is pending.

The foundation also sued Intel Corp. in 2008 for infringing on the same patent, but the parties settled shortly before a scheduled trial.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 13, 2015 20:46 ET (00:46 GMT)

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