Apple is being sued for a convenient feature it uses on its Apple Watch. The feature in question is the Auto Unlock feature which allows users with Apple Watch to automatically unlock their iPhones and MacBooks. Also Read – Central Government Employees Can Now Buy iPad Using Computer Purchase Allowance: View Details
Apple sued for alleged patent infringement
SmartWatch MobilesConcepts LLC has filed suit against Cupertino giant, Apple (via) patent appleAccording to that company, Apple uses its patented feature on its Apple Watch. However, SmartWatch MobilesConcepts LLC is said to be a patent troll company that acquired this type of feature in 2016. Also Read – Father’s Day 2022: Best gifts for techies and non-tech dads
The patent that was filed is titled “Systems, Methods and Apparatus for Enabling Wearable Device User Access to Secure Electronic Systems” and the patent number is 10,362,4880. Also Read – Telegram founder Pavel Durov criticizes Apple for ‘deliberately crippling’ web apps on iOS
For those unaware, patent troll companies are firms that do not create anything new, but instead acquire patents as a legal weapon against other large companies to make money. Typically, they buy patents cheaply and then threaten or send legal notices to similar or like-minded firms.
However, in the case of Apple, it doesn’t matter much as Apple announced this auto unlock feature at the WWDC event in June 2016. Whereas SmartWatch MobilesConcepts LLC patented the feature with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in August 2016, two months after Apple’s announcement. And it was later published in February 2017. By this time, the feature was widely used by many people. Also, the company may have tested this feature several times before Apple announced it.
It now remains to be seen how the lawsuit pans out and how Apple responds to it. In the meantime, we’d like to let you know that this isn’t the first time Apple has been sued for patent infringement. Earlier it was sued for features like Wi-Fi technology, WiLAN and others. But the thing is, Apple wins most of these cases, of course, Apple isn’t Apple for nothing? There is technology in it and so on.
Samsung was recently sued by a company for using a feature that tells how much battery is left in Samsung phones. But we have yet to hear more about it.