Nokia Asks ITC to Look into Apple Patent Infringement

Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia has announced today that it has filed a complaint with the United States International Trade Commission (ITC), stating that computer maker Apple is infringing Nokia patents in almost all of the products it delivers to the market. According to the leading handset vendor, Apple's mobile phones, portable music players, and computers are infringing Nokia's patents.

There are seven Nokia patents named in the complaint, all of which are said to be related to Nokia's pioneering innovations that are currently used by the Cupertino-based company “to create key features in its products in the area of user interface, as well as camera, antenna and power management technologies.” As Nokia reveals, these patents are the base for an enhanced user experience, as well as for lower manufacturing costs, smaller size and longer battery life for its products, and they are very important to the company’s success.

“Nokia has been the leading developer of many key technologies in small electronic devices,” Paul Melin, General Manager, Patent Licensing at Nokia, commented on the announcement. “This action is about protecting the results of such pioneering development. While our litigation in Delaware is about Apple's attempt to free-ride on the back of Nokia investment in wireless standards, the ITC case filed today is about Apple's practice of building its business on Nokia's proprietary innovation.”

Most of you might already be familiar with the fact that the legal dispute between the two companies started a few weeks ago, when Nokia filed a lawsuit against Apple, alleging that the company's iPhone was infringing a series of patents Nokia holds in the wireless communications area (patents on GSM, UMTS and wireless LAN (WLAN) standards, to be more precise). Shortly after, Apple counter-sued Nokia, stating that the Finnish maker “chose to copy the iPhone, especially its enormously popular and patented design and user interface.”