Nokia broadens legal wrangle with Apple


30 Dec 2009

The legal wrangle between Nokia and Apple has broadened beyond just the iPhone as the Finnish phone giant claims patents on most of its other products have been violated.

It announced that further complaints have been filed with the US International Trade Commission.

Nokia alleges that Apple's iPhone, iPod and computers all violate its intellectual property rights.

A number of features in the products are in question, including aspects of user interface, cameras, antenna, and power management technologies. Nokia said that these features are designed to help cut costs, reduce the size of the products and prolong battery life.

A household name in Asia and Europe, Nokia is a smaller player in the United States, where its smart phones face tough competition from Apple's iPhone and Research in Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry devices. Nokia, the world's largest cell phone maker, has cautioned that its own market share volume, currently at some 38% would be flat next year.

The company, which is based in Espoo, Finland, has already sued Apple over the massively popular iPhone, claiming it infringes on 10 of its patents related to phone calls and Wi-Fi access.

Apple has denied the charges and this month countered with its own lawsuit, saying Nokia has copied aspects of the iPhone in its devices. Apple claims Nokia is violating its patent rights on technology for connecting phones to computers, teleconferencing and touch-screen menus, among other things.

Copyright © Press Association 2009

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