Apple & Google Agree to Drop Lawsuits, But Deal Doesn’t Affect Samsung Cases
Apple and Google have agreed to drop the lawsuits the two technology giants have filed against each other, but it only applies to legal cases involving Google's Motorola Mobility.
In a joint statement on Friday, the two companies said the settlement excludes a cross license on their respective patents, but "Apple and Google agreed to work together in some areas of patent reforms."
Following the agreement, Apple and Google informed a federal appeals court in Washington to dismiss all the lawsuits both companies filed against each other. However, even if Samsung uses Google's Android OS, Apple excluded the lawsuits against its South Korean rival in the dismissal notices.
The lawsuits were initiated by Motorola Mobility against the Cupertino-based maker of iPhones in 2010 over patent infringement. In turn, Apple filed counter lawsuits against Motorola.
The Apple-Samsung lawsuits are ongoing in several countries in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Two weeks ago, a jury found Samsung guilty of breaching one of Apple's patents. But it awarded Apple only $119.6 million, a fraction of the $2-billion damage that the company co-founded by the late Steve Jobs was seeking.