Court orders Apple to pay $625 million in damages to VirnetX over patent dispute

Apple has been ordered by a federal jury in east Texas to pay $625 million for patent infringement, Reuters reported late Wednesday. The jury found the iPhone maker guilty of using VirnetX’s security technology without its permission.

More specifically, Apple was found guilty of willfully infringing on technology found in VirnetX Holding Corp’s patents related to virtual private networking protocols, which Apple uses in its FaceTime and iMessage apps on iPhone and iPad.

Apple issued a statement vowing to appeal. “We are surprised and disappointed by the verdict,” the company said. “Cases like this simply reinforce the desperate need for patent reform.”
Also on Wednesday, Apple filed court papers asking U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder to declare a mistrial, saying VirnetX’s attorneys had misled the jury during closing arguments. It is not known when Schroeder will rule on that request.
“The jury saw what we have been saying all along: Apple has been infringing VirnetX’s patented technology for years,” VirnetX lawyer Jason Cassady said in a statement.

This case dates back to 2012, where VirnetX was originally awarded $368.2 million in damages from Apple. In 2014, that decision was tossed out of court, due to the verdict handed down being influenced by the instructions that were provided to the jury. It was decided that another case, over the same patents, would be started, and this is the result of that retrial.

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