Creative to get US$100 million from Apple (I can't believe Creative won)

[Baby]

Creative to get US$100 million from Apple

By Adrian Tay
Aug 24, 2006
AsiaOne

Apple Computer has said that it will pay US$100 million for a license to use Singapore-based Creative Technology's patented technology in its iPods.

This effectively ends the legal disputes between the two companies.

In May, this year, Creative had sued Apple for allegedly infringing a patent on its Zen range of MP3 players.

This resulted in Apple countersuing in June.

In a media statement, Sim Wong Hoo, Creative's CEO and chairman said "We're very pleased to have reached an amicable settlement with Apple and to have opened up significant new opportunities for Creative."

While Apple's CEO, Steve Jobs said that "Creative is very fortunate to have been granted this early patent."

Jobs added "This settlement resolves all of our differences with Creative, including the five lawsuits currently pending between the companies, and removes the uncertainty and distraction of prolonged litigation."

[Baby]

Apple to Pay $100M to Settle 5 Lawsuits

By RACHEL KONRAD
AP Technology Writer


AP Photo/PAUL SAKUMA

Technology Video









SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Apple Computer Inc. will pay $100 million to rival Creative Technology Ltd. to settle five patent lawsuits over technology for navigating through songs on the popular iPod digital music player, the companies said Wednesday.

The settlement allows Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple to recoup a portion of its payment if other electronics companies license Creative's technology.

"Creative is very fortunate to have been granted this early patent," Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, said in a statement Wednesday. "This settlement resolves all of our differences with Creative, including the five lawsuits currently pending between the companies, and removes the uncertainty and distraction of prolonged litigation."

Creative Chairman and CEO Sim Wong Hoo called the settlement "amicable."




In June, the U.S. International Trade Commission agreed to investigate whether Apple's iPod infringes on one of Creative's patents. Singapore-based Creative filed the ITC complaint and a federal lawsuit, alleging that iPods infringed on its patent for a navigation system used to organize and access music on its Zen media players.

In the three months that ended July 1, Apple shipped 8.1 million iPods, up more than 32 percent jump from the 2005 fiscal third quarter. IPods outsell Apple computers by nearly an eight-to-one ratio, a significant contributor to the company's quarterly profit of $472 million and $4.37 billion in revenue.

In the ITC complaint, Creative asked the ITC to block imports of the Cupertino-based company's market-leading iPods, which are manufactured abroad. If the federal agency had sided with Creative and approved the ban, Apple would have been unable to import the company's most popular product to the world's largest consumer market.

In court documents, Apple maintained no wrongdoing and subsequently filed two patent-infringement countersuits against Creative, which were also settled Wednesday.

Latest News
IBM to Acquire Internet Security Systems
Apple: No Forced Labor at iPod Plant

Southern Schools Form Computer Grid









Latest News
Apple to Pay $100M to Settle 5 Lawsuits
Apple: No Forced Labor at iPod Plant

Nordic Regulators to Discuss iTunes

Apple Repeats Required Filing to Be Late





Buy AP Photo Reprints









"The ITC presents a uniquely fast and threatening forum," said Stefani Shanberg, a partner and patent litigator with Perkins Coie LLP in San Francisco. "The ITC's decision would have come down before any district court decision, and that was probably a motivating factor in getting the settlement done quickly. Both companies had a pretty quick day of reckoning coming."

The one-time licensing payment would not materially affect Apple's financial performance, said Apple spokesman Steve Dowling. The payment will add 85 cents per share to Creative's earnings in the current quarter, which ends Sept. 30, Hoo said.

Michael Kroll, a Syosset, N.Y.-based patent attorney and engineer, called the one-time payment "nickels and dimes" for Apple, which has a market capitalization of $57.4 billion.

"A settlement doesn't mean anyone's right or wrong. In general it's just the cheapest way to get on with life," Kroll said. "You do what's best at the time. I'm sure that's what Apple was thinking."

The announcement came after U.S. stock markets closed. Apple stock closed Wednesday at $67.31, down 31 cents from the previous day. In after-hours trading on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, it lost another 16 cents.

The settlement had a bigger impact on Creative, which has a market capitalization of less than $500 million.

Creative stock closed Wednesday at $6.01, down 5 cents from the previous day. After the settlement was announced during after-hours trading, the share price surged nearly 37 percent, gaining $2.25.

[Astute33]

Creative Stock price in SG increased by $2.30 (at time of posting)...

Live stock quotes.
http://stquote.sgx.com/live/st/STStock.asp?stk=C

Anyone bought Creative shares at ~$8 to $9 price?

[bluetooth]

Did you buy? NO i don't buy stocks.

[sky2000]

I guess that sometime small fish can still take a bite out of the big fish.

[Astute33]

There are even bigger fishes that are waiting to gobble them up... so its better for them to work together to fight the really big fish rather then fighting among themselves and get eaten by later on. ;)

[bluetooth]

It is not abt. dog eats dog. When you infringe a patent, you ought to pay for the it. It is as simple as that.