Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Apple's Historic Court Victory Focuses ALL EYES on VRINGO - THOMSON ARTICLE

Apple's Historic Court Victory Focuses ALL EYES on VRINGO - THOMSON ARTICLE

Speculation that Vringo, Inc. (VRNG) will prevail in its patent infringement case against industry giant Google, Inc. (GOOG) may be more than just that. On Friday Apple, Inc. (AAPL) was awarded $1.05 billion from Samsung Electronics (SSNLF) in a patent win, with potential treble damages sought, and wide implications for the hand-held electronics market. In the ruthlessly competitive and highly litigious smartphone and mobile app markets, tiny Vringo will soon face Google over the claim that Google stole its patented expertise used in its search advertising technology, central to Google`s revenue base. Co-defendents are Google Inc. (GOOG), AOL, Inc. (AOL), IAC/InterActive Corp. (IACI), Target Corporation (TGT), and Gannett Co., Inc. (GCI) IAC/InterActive Corp., companies with market capitalization in the billions of dollars. Vringo has already received a favorableMarkman ruling last June, a possible harbinger for the October trial.  An interesting aspect of the Vringo claim against Google is that it does not involve simply features on a Smartphone, it is addressing a core technology - the search advertising business according to the complaint filed.
In addition to the Google suite Vringo`s huge, newly-acquired patent estate from Nokia Corp. (NOK), further bolsters Vringo`s patent portfolio Vringo has increased its IP portfolio by 15x and emerges as a power house in IP assets and IP monetization across the entire range of tech`s hottest sectors from mobility, to search engines, to digital advertising. This newly acquired portfolio potentially gives Vringo a pipe line of Infringement cases that could be extremely lucrative with potential award and royalty stream in the multi-billions. - the now-famous case of NTP vs. Research in Motion (RIMM) cost the defendant $612 million, and fully-paid, up-front licenses fees for eternity. David Cohen, in house council for Vringo, was formerly the senior litigation council for Nokia. During his time at Nokia, Cohen managed the successful worldwide litigation against Apple Inc. (AAPL) which resulted in a reported $715 million settlement, plus ongoing royalties for every iPhone sold worldwide. 

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