Jury orders Apple to pay $5.7 billion in Taction patent verdict

A federal jury in San Diego ordered Apple to pay Taction Technology more than $5.7 billion in damages on Friday, finding that Apple's Taptic Engine infringed two of Taction's patents. The jury found Apple liable for infringing two claims in one patent and one claim in the other, but it did not find that Apple willfully infringed.theverge.com+1

The verdict puts a price on the hardware that produces the taps and vibrations iPhone and Apple Watch users feel when they interact with their devices. Taction argued that Apple used its patented vibration technology without a licence, and the jury agreed. Apple said it disagrees with the finding and plans to appeal, arguing its Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction's technology.ithinkdiff.com

What the jury found

The case centres on U.S. Patent Nos. 10,659,885 and 10,820,117, which both cover vibration-based, tactile transducer technology that helps users feel a device responding to their input. Taction alleged that Apple's Taptic Engine, built into iPhones and Apple Watches, used technology covered by those patents without a licence or authorisation, and that Apple was capitalising on Taction's innovation and success.

Taction first filed the lawsuit in 2021 in the US District Court for the Southern District of California, alleging Apple had infringed and continues to infringe, directly and indirectly, its patents. Apple initially secured a dismissal of the case in 2023, when a federal judge in San Diego ruled in Apple's favour and found that Apple had not infringed Taction's patents.

The Federal Circuit later revived the dispute after Taction appealed, allowing the patent claims to proceed to trial. The trial began on September 14, with seven jurors hearing arguments over Apple's alleged infringement of the two patents. After the proceedings ended, the jury deliberated for two days before returning to court at 1:15 p.m. PT on Friday to deliver its verdict in favour of Taction.

How the case reached trial

The Taptic Engine first debuted as part of the Apple Watch in 2014 and came to the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus the following year, replacing the older vibration motor. Taction had accused Apple of reverse-engineering the technology from two Kannon gaming headsets. Taction Technology is a California-based company that describes itself as being obsessed by sound.

An Apple spokesperson said the company strongly disagrees with the verdict and the damages awarded, which are entirely unsupported by the facts, and said Apple's Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction's technology, which Taction's own testing of Apple's products confirmed during trial. Apple said it does not use Taction's technology and will appeal.

Taction's lead counsel, Lance Yang, partner at Quinn Emanuel, said the company is happy the jury found for Taction and vindicated its patent rights, and that Taction waited five and a half years for this case to get to trial. The jury did not determine that Apple's infringement was willful, a finding that had been part of Taction's case.

What happens next

The award of more than $5.7 billion is described as the largest patent award in US history, and the amount is tied to Apple's use of the technology covered by the two patents. The verdict does not end the dispute: Apple has said it will appeal the decision, meaning the legal fight over the patents and the damages award is set to continue.livemint.com

The case will now move into the appeals process as Apple challenges the jury's findings, and the final damages and outcome could still change as the case moves through the courts. Apple has said it intends to appeal the decision, and the company's statement said it does not use Taction's technology.