Another day, another lawsuit. Patent holdings firm RFCyber is suing Apple, claiming Apple Pay violates five pieces of its intellectual property regarding mobile payments technologies, reports AppleInsider. It’s the fifth time the “patent troll” has sued Apple.
About the dispute
Filed with the U.S. Court for the Western District of Texas, RFCyber’s complaint alleges infringement of multiple patents covering contactless mobile payments methods involving NFC, secure elements and other technologies implemented in Apple Pay. RFCyber seeks damages, royalties and court fees.
What’s a patent troll?
A patent holding company exists to hold patents on behalf of one or more other companies but does not necessarily manufacture products or supply services based upon the patents held. Many folks, like me, consider such companies to be patent trolls.
A patent troll is an individual or an organization that purchases and holds patents for unscrupulous purposes such as stifling competition or launching patent infringement suits. In legal terms, a patent troll is a type of non-practicing entity: someone who holds a patent but is not involved in the design or manufacture of any product.
