Apple loses patent battle over Taptic Engine and gets served $5.7B bill
“Turn to vibrate” has landed Apple in serious legal trouble.
Image by Jakub Porzycki/Getty Images
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- A California jury ordered Apple to pay Taction more than $5.7 billion for patent infringement.
- The case centers on the Taptic Engine, which creates vibrations in iPhones and Apple Watches.
- Taction says Apple used its haptic feedback technology without permission.
- Apple denies the claims, says the technology differs from Taction’s patents, and plans to appeal.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
Apple has lost an intellectual property lawsuit and is now ordered to pay over $5.7 billion in damages.
The case centers on Apple’s Taptic Engine, a small rectangular component in iPhones and Apple Watches that makes the devices vibrate when users receive a notification or alert.
According to Taction, a tech company that develops haptic feedback technology, Apple used its technology in the Taptic Engines without permission.
Therefore, Taction sued Apple in April 2021 in the US District Court for the Southern District of California for patent infringement.
According to the indictment, Apple has been “capitalizing on Taction’s innovation and success by selling devices that infringe Taction’s patents.”
Allegedly, Apple had been utilizing Taction’s patented inventions “without license or authority” from Taction.
Taction wins 5-year legal battle over haptic feedback technology
Initially, Apple won the lawsuit in 2023, when a jury ruled there was no patent infringement. Taction appealed against that decision.
This time, the judge ruled in favor of Taction, stating that Apple infringed 2 patents of the haptic feedback developer. For this, Apple is ordered to pay $5,721,961,750 in damages to compensate Taction.
“We’re happy the jury found for Taction and vindicated its patent rights. Taction waited 5 and a half years for this case to get to trial, so it was a long time coming,” Taction’s attorney Lance Yang said in a statement to CNBC.
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Apple strongly disagrees with the verdict and plans to appeal
Apple, on the other hand, denied the allegations and claimed that the patents were invalid.
“While we thank the jury for their consideration, we strongly disagree with today’s verdict and the damages awarded, which are entirely unsupported by the facts,” a company spokesperson told the media on Friday.
“Apple’s Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction’s technology, which Taction’s own testing of Apple’s products confirmed during trial. Apple does not use Taction’s technology, and we will appeal.”
