Image via CrunchBase
Apple licensed an iOS software patent to Nokia and IBM– reportedly related to scrolling, especially the part where over-scrolling reveals a textured background.
When Apple and Samsung reached a settlement over a patent battle last summer and withdrew complaints from the U.S. International Trade Commission, Apple not only paid up a one-time check but also forked over ongoing royalties to Nokia. One of the items Apple licensed to Nokia and IBM– is reportedly the iOS scrolling patent. This by itself demonstrates that Apple lost a major fight as the Cupertino company was never so willing to give away code, especially if that bit was referring to iOS.
What’'s even more interesting is that Apple reportedly offered the license to the same patent to Samsung during failed settlement negotiations in November 2010. This, of course, in a context in which the late Steve Jobs wanted to "destroy Android" because he regarded it as being a stolen product. There's no information on why those specific negotiations failed (or whether others are ongoing with lawsuits between the two companies now existing on almost every continent).
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