Eight years later, Apple still demands that Samsung pay $1 billion for patent infringement

• Apple wants Samsung to pay the full damage amount of $1 billion.
• The case revolves around what consists of an ‘article of manufacture’.
  
• Apple asserts that its the entire phone, while Samsung says the definition could be restricted to components.

Eight years in the making, Apple is now seeking $1 billion (₹6,700 crores) from Samsung in damages stemming from the patent infringement dispute between them. Samsung has already shelled out $548 million, but it’s the other $399 million that’s being fought over.

The issue is essentially about two patents. The first of which, is the US Patent No. D618,677 which centers around the black, rectangular, round-cornered front of the iPhone. The second patent, US Patent No. D593,087, focuses on the area surrounding the screen called bezels.

The fourth episode of this case revolves around clarifying the definition of ‘article of manufacture’, that is whether the contents of the patents apply to the whole phone. While Apple says that it constitutes the entire phone, Samsung disagrees, asserting that it could be applied specifically to separate components within a phone.

The American tech giant’s lawyer argued in court that though the design aspects in question only address the iPhone at a cosmetic level, they are still key features of the Apple brand. His own words sight the design as ‘revolutionary’.

The original trial, back in 2012, awarded Apple $1.05 billion in damages, which was less than half of their ask of $2.75 billion. But, in a turn of events, the judge issued a re-trial citing jury error and struck off $450.5 million from the original payment.

This left $1 billion on the table. A new hearing was scheduled for November 2013, where the damages to Apple would be recalculated. Come December 2015, it was decided that Samsung would finally pay Apple $548 million.

Now, the argument boils down to an even smaller part of that payment. Apple is arguing that not only should Samsung pay the entire $399 million (which applies specifically to the two patents mentioned above) but the original $1 billion because ‘article of manufacture’ consists of the whole phone. On the other hand, Samsung only wants to provide a mere $28 million in reimbursements.