Apple's Patent Portfolio Manager Exiting as HTC and Samsung Disputes Simmer

While Apple finds itself embroiled in a number of intellectual property disputes both on both offensive and defensive fronts, Reuters reports that Chip Lutton, who oversees the company's significant patent portfolio, will be leaving the company. Lutton is apparently being replaced by HP lawyer BJ Watrous.

It was unclear why Richard "Chip" Lutton Junior, who manages the iPhone maker's patent portfolio, is leaving the company.

However, BJ Watrous, a former deputy general counsel with Hewlett Packard, is now listed as Apple's chief IP counsel on Watrous's LinkedIn web page.

Two of Apple's highest-profile patent disputes involve HTC and Samsung, major players in the smartphone market who primarily rely on Google's Android operating system. Apple and HTC have been embroiled in a dispute dating back well over a year, but several developments over the past week indicate that the situation is heating up. Last week, HTC agreed to acquire S3 Graphics, a firm which just days earlier had won a preliminary patent judgment against Apple, potentially giving HTC more ammunition in its fight against Apple.

htc apple samsung logos
And just two days after that, Apple filed a new complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) seeking to blocking imports of HTC's Flyer tablets and Droid smartphones over alleged patent infringement. As noted by AFP, HTC has denied the allegations and expressed its displeasure that Apple has chosen to compete in the courts rather than letting things play out in the market.

"HTC is disappointed at Apple's constant attempts at litigations instead of competing fairly in the market," said HTC general counsel Grace Lei in a statement.

"HTC strongly denies all infringement claims raised by Apple in the past and present and reiterates our determination and commitment to protect our intellectual property rights," she said.

The situation with Samsung continues to escalate as well, with the two sides filing opposing complaints with the ITC over the past couple of weeks seeking to have imports of each others' mobile products blocked. Samsung has also asked that at least some of Apple's lawyers be removed from the case due to potential conflicts of interest and confidentiality concerns given that a number of Apple's lawyers had previously represented Samsung.

The dispute between Apple and Samsung, one of Apple's major suppliers in addition to being a significant competitor, holds major implications for both companies, with Apple reportedly considering a shakeup of its suppliers in order to reduce its reliance on Samsung.

Popular Stories

Apple Glass

Apple Smart Glasses: Everything We Know So Far

Wednesday May 21, 2025 8:21 am PDT by
Google made waves yesterday by showcasing a set of lightweight smart glasses featuring deep Gemini integration and an optional in-lens display. The demo has reignited interest in Apple's own smart glasses project, which has been the subject of rumors for nearly a decade. Here's a recap of where things stand. Current Development Status Apple is actively working on new chips specifically...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Battery Capacity and Weight Allegedly Revealed

Monday May 19, 2025 2:22 am PDT by
Apple is expected to launch an all-new ultra-thin iPhone 17 Air later this year, and while there have been plenty of rumors about the camera's overall design and thinness, we haven't heard any details about the device's weight and battery capacity until now. According to the leaker going by the account name "yeux1122" on the Korean-langauge Naver blog, the 6.6-inch iPhone 17 Air has a weight ...
Apple CarPlay Ultra instrument cluster themes 01

Apple's CarPlay Ultra Is Here – Does Your iPhone Support It?

Thursday May 15, 2025 5:17 am PDT by
Apple's recently announced CarPlay Ultra promises a deeply integrated in-car experience, but not all iPhone users will be able to take advantage of the new feature. According to Apple's press release, CarPlay Ultra requires an iPhone 12 or later running iOS 18.5 or later. This means if you're using an iPhone 11, iPhone XR, or any older model, you'll need to upgrade your device to access...
WWDC 2025 Banner

Apple Announces WWDC 2025 Schedule, Including Keynote Time

Tuesday May 20, 2025 8:13 am PDT by
Apple today announced a more detailed schedule for its annual developers conference WWDC, which runs from June 9 through June 13. The schedule confirms that Apple's keynote will begin on Monday, June 9 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, with a live stream to be available on Apple.com, in the Apple TV app, and on YouTube. During the keynote, Apple is expected to announce iOS 19, iPadOS 19, macOS 16,...
macOS 16 visionOS Inspired Feature 1

macOS 16: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday May 20, 2025 7:31 am PDT by
The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple's annual developer and software-oriented event, is less than three weeks away. We haven't heard a great deal about macOS 16 ahead of its announcement this year, so we could be in for some major surprises when June 9 rolls around. Here's what we know so far about the next major update to Apple's Mac operating system. macOS 16 Name? Every year ...
Apple Glasses Purple Feature

Apple Smart Glasses Launching in 2026

Thursday May 22, 2025 12:22 pm PDT by
Apple is planning to launch a set of smart glasses by the end of 2026, reports Bloomberg. The glasses will be comparable to the Meta Ray-Bans and the Android XR glasses that Google showed off earlier this week. Apple's smart glasses are expected to include cameras, microphones, and AI capabilities, much like the Meta Ray-Bans. The glasses will be able to take photos, record video, provide...
maxresdefault

OpenAI Buys Jony Ive's AI Startup to 'Completely Reimagine What It Means to Use a Computer'

Wednesday May 21, 2025 10:27 am PDT by
OpenAI is acquiring io, the hardware-based AI startup co-created by Jony Ive, OpenAI announced today. Ive has been working with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on io for two years, and the duo expects to develop a family of AI devices. In a video shared by OpenAI, Altman and Ive outlined their partnership and what they expect to create as a result of the merger. "I have a growing sense that everything ...
Apple CarPlay Ultra instrument cluster themes 01

Apple's 'CarPlay Ultra' Experience Now Available

Thursday May 15, 2025 5:07 am PDT by
Apple today announced that its next-generation CarPlay experience, now dubbed "CarPlay Ultra" begins rolling out today, starting with Aston Martin vehicles. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. CarPlay Ultra is now available with new Aston Martin vehicle orders in the U.S. and Canada. It will also be available for existing models that feature the brand's next-generation ...

Top Rated Comments

bbeagle Avatar
181 months ago
Apple is officially a patent troll. :rolleyes:

:rolleyes: Sigh. Words seem to have lost meaning to some people.

A patent troll is a company who does not make products, like Lodsys, who uses their patents to go after other companies just for money.

Apple is either using patents to protect it's business or to drive others out of business.

Driving others out of business is not necessarily bad. If they own legit patents, it is totally fair to drive others who are doing illegal activities out of business.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
RalfTheDog Avatar
181 months ago
I...yes I've used android, I used to work in a phone during my architecture degree.
Big phone or are you just very small? :)
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dustinsc Avatar
181 months ago
:rolleyes: Sigh. Words seem to have lost meaning to some people.

A patent troll is a company who does not make products, like Lodsys, who uses their patents to go after other companies just for money.

Apple is either using patents to protect it's business or to drive others out of business.

Driving others out of business is not necessarily bad. If they own legit patents, it is totally fair to drive others who are doing illegal activities out of business.

I was thinking the exact same thing. Patents are a big thing and are important to allow innovators to profit from their inventions. I honestly don't know if Apple's case against HTC is solid because it depends on a lot of technical stuff, but when someone infringes on a patent, you'd better hope the patent holder goes after them.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kdarling Avatar
181 months ago
Actually, they are seeking an injunction against the Galaxy II s, and Tablet.

Yes, plus some. Apple's lawsuit against Samsung (http://cdn0.sbnation.com/podcasts/apple-samsung-lawsuit.pdf) objects to more than just the Galaxy models:

"Samsung has imported into or sold in the United States the following products, each of which infringes one or more of Apple’s Intellectual Property Rights: the Samsung Captivate, Continuum, Vibrant, Galaxy S 4G, Epic 4G, Indulge, Mesmerize, Showcase, Fascinate, Nexus S, Gem, Transform, Intercept, and Acclaim smart phones and the Samsung Galaxy Tab tablet." - Apple

Apple later ammended their lawsuit and added even more phones: The Droid Charge, Galaxy Ace, Galaxy Prevail, Galaxy S (i9000), Gravity, Infuse 4G, Nexus S 4G, Replenish, Sidekick, Galaxy Tab 10.1, and Galaxy S II.

As PC Magazine pointed out (http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2383820,00.asp), "... Apple also cites the Samsung Epic, Transform, Intercept and Acclaim — all of which have gigantic slide-out QWERTY keyboards, which absolutely nobody would ever mistake for an iPhone. The Samsung Gem is a different shape, and has several buttons at the bottom. And the Samsung Continuum has a whole extra display along the bottom bezel."
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AppleFan1984 Avatar
181 months ago
I wonder if Chip was burnt out? or thrown out?
I'd wager the latter. Failing to check out the new consulting attorneys for possible conflict of interest could cost Apple their most important case against their biggest competitor. Understandable since he's so overworked, but costly just the same.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
lilo777 Avatar
181 months ago
http://www.engadget.com/2011/07/12/htc-tells-apple-to-try-competing-rather-than-suing/#disqus_thread

Wow. Engadget has gone from bad TO worse TO absolutely ridiculous and pathetic with 12 years old posting just non-sense.

As I said, it was a very good move by HTC to make their fanboys and apple-haters roar for a lot of reasons. I'm quite positive that the result will be in Apple's favour.

Infringement IS infringement. Gotta pay for it. ;)

Are you talking about recent court verdict stating that Apple infringed on a couple of S3 patents (now owned by HTC)?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)