After Winning $11 Million From Samsung, Rembrandt Sues Apple Over Same Bluetooth-Related Patents

Thursday January 24, 2019 10:56 AM PST by Joe Rossignol
Pennsylvania-based entity Rembrandt Wireless Technologies has filed a lawsuit against Apple today in the U.S. district court for Eastern Texas, accusing the iPhone maker of infringing on two of its Bluetooth-related patents.


In its complaint, obtained by MacRumors, Rembrandt alleges that all Apple products that support Bluetooth 2.0 or newer with Enhanced Data Rate, including the iPhone 3GS and newer, all iPad and Apple Watch models, several Mac models, HomePod, and others, infringe on U.S. Patent Nos. 8,457,228 and 8,023,580.

Enhanced Data Rate, often shortened to EDR, is a technology that allows for faster Bluetooth data transmission speeds.

The asserted patents describe wireless communication techniques that appear to be related to Bluetooth with EDR, so the alleged infringement could extend to virtually any Bluetooth-enabled device. The same Eastern Texas court ordered Samsung to pay $11 million to Rembrandt last year over the same two patents.

Rembrandt is not the original assignee of the patents, which both expired on December 4, 2018, according to its complaint. The entity says it is still entitled to damages for infringement that occurred prior to the expiration of the patents.

Rembrandt is seeking an award of damages stemming from Apple's infringement in an amount to be proven at trial. In the Samsung case, a jury calculated damages based on a royalty rate of approximately five-and-a-half cents per infringing device. Rembrandt has requested a jury trial against Apple as well.

The case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, who also presided over the Samsung trial.

Rembrandt Wireless Technologies vs Apple Inc by MacRumors on Scribd on Scribd



Tags: lawsuit, Bluetooth, Rembrandt
47 comments

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AngerDanger
10 months ago
Holy ****! I never knew he did engineering and legal work in addition to baroque paintings! He truly is a renaissance man.
Rating: 11 Votes
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gsmornot
10 months ago

This is for a patent that has expired, and second-hand to start with; peculiar patent extensions. It covers almost every manufacturer on earth from the late 90's.

Is USA the only nation that gives patent for even water, if I apply for it?

Wonder if Rembrandt's family is around - they can apply for a patent and go after everyone who ever mentioned the name in an article, and this company.

They might have a valid point if the patent holder at the time was not paid anything - essentially IP theft.

Will be interesting to se how the court handles an "American" company as the defendant!

You may not be able to patent water but you can patent making it wetter.
Rating: 4 Votes
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KPandian1
10 months ago
This patent is from 1997 root patent. How is this still alive, not make any money until the Samsung case and get granted to another party (or two)?

Someone is playing Apple' game on them.

You may not be able to patent water but you can patent making it wetter.


Holy ****! I never knew he did engineering and legal work in addition to baroque paintings! He truly is a renaissance man.


The clowning is back - nice!
Rating: 2 Votes
Avatar
gsmornot
10 months ago

This patent is from 1997 root patent. How is this still alive, not make any money until the Samsung case and get granted to another party (or two)?

Someone is playing Apple' game on them.





The clowning is back - nice!

You must think I was kidding. Water wetter is a product and it has a patent. Ha
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
macfacts
10 months ago

But Apple is sitting on a ton of patents for products that will probably never see the light of day. Apple isn't shy of the courts when it comes to IP, either. Should Apple lose its patents, too?


Apple is worst than a patent troll. Patent trolls will let you use their tech if you license it. Apple won't let you even use the tech cause Apple won't even license it, even if apple isn't using it.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
techwhiz
10 months ago

You may not be able to patent water but you can patent making it wetter.


These kind of patents should never be allowed.
There is no algorithm on how to do it.
It's an idea or theory.

Our system is broken.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
macfacts
10 months ago

Yes I understand that but they also make things, they are a tech company like google and Microsoft etc. patent trolls don’t make anything yet sue everyone that does. That’s not right.


Why do you think making something should be some threshold for being to own a patent? Is not paying cold hard cash for a patent give the new owner the right to do what ever they want with it? It is their property now.

Or do you think they should not be able to license their patents to manufacturers? Who ever owns the biggest factories can just steal from the little guy, and just "make stuff". The little guy doesn't own a factory and gets his patents stolen from them.
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
KPandian1
10 months ago
This is for a patent that has expired, and second-hand to start with; peculiar patent extensions. It covers almost every manufacturer on earth from the late 90's.

Is USA the only nation that gives patent for even water, if I apply for it?

Wonder if Rembrandt's family is around - they can apply for a patent and go after everyone who ever mentioned the name in an article, and this company.

They might have a valid point if the patent holder at the time was not paid anything - essentially IP theft.

Will be interesting to se how the court handles an "American" company as the defendant!
Rating: 1 Votes
Avatar
jlc1978
10 months ago

Like I said you need to make something that use it. Not just one item but make thousands of units and sell them. Patent trolls just buy patents and never make anything and sue the companies that do.

I see two issues with this idea:

1. If someone invents something but does not have the resources to manufacture it there is no compelling reason for anyone to buy the patent and actually make something. Since the inventor can’t get a patent there is now prior art and anyone can use it. You are essentially saying only large well funded companies should be able to patent something. A startup probably would find funding harder to get as well for similar reasons.

2. Large companies patent many things they never use, so supporting the make or lose idea would hurt them and thus why support such a scheme?
Rating: 1 Votes
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squirrellydw
10 months ago
My question is why don’t all the big tech companies like Apple google ms etc get Congress to pass a law that if you own patents but don’t sell anything you can’t sue? I know it’s a bit tricker then that but patent trolls need to go. At least when Apple Samsung and qualacom sue they make things.
Rating: 1 Votes
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