The judges at the U.S. International Trade Commission(ITC) have ruled that NVidia’s shield tablets and certain GPUs are infringing on 3 of the patents held by Samsung and threatened to ban the sales of the concerned products.
It all started in 2014 when NVidia file a lawsuit against Samsung and QUALCOMM accusing them of using its proprietary technology in its chips and GPU. Samsung retaliated with a counter accusing NVidia of infringing on its own patents. It also seeked to ban the NVidia shield tablets and some system on chips (soc) that infringed the said patents. The court has decided that NVidia’s claim of infringement has no merit and its own product infringe on the Samsung patents.
The decision isn’t ultimate and NVidia can re-appeal and the final decision is still month away.
“We are disappointed,” Hector Marinez, a spokesman for NVIDIA, said a statement. “We look forward to seeking review by the full ITC which will decide this case several months from now.”
the graphic company has also stated that the patent that Samsung is accusing NVidia of infringing have been lying dormant for decades and resulting in stagnation of innovation
. “chosen three patents that have been sitting on the shelf for years collecting nothing but dust.” Were the exact words.
The ruling is not only important for QUALCOMM or Samsung, but for many small scale companies that buy or licence technologies from the developing companies. Imagine a ban on the snapdragon chips could have resonated worldwide with lots of small manufacturers unable to use the snapdragon soc in their smartphones.
Stay tuned for this developing story.