Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Report & Recommendation: Apple's iPhone Does Not Infringe Caller ID Patent

The magistrate judge recommended granting Apple's motion for summary judgment that the iPhone does not infringe a patent claiming a system for "displaying the incoming telephone number and the name of the party." With respect to function, "[w]hile the iPhone includes a mechanism for displaying the incoming telephone number alone, it lacks a mechanism for displaying the incoming telephone number along [with] the information contained in the name field of the Address Book." Further, "the telephone number that appears on the iPhone’s display device is not the 'incoming' telephone number . . . [but] the custom label that was created before any incoming call occurs." With respect to structure "while the microprocessor of the [patent-in-suit] is programmed to operate in two alternative modes and to always display the incoming telephone number, the algorithm of the iPhone’s display device operates in three alternative modes and only sometimes displays the incoming telephone number. Given these substantial differences, no reasonable jury could find literal infringement."

Figa v. Apple Inc., 1-08-cv-10304
(MAD September 21, 2009, Report & Recommendation)
(Dein, M.J.)

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