US Jury directs Apple to pay $502.8 million for patent infringement

US Jury directs Apple to pay $502.8 million for patent infringement

A jury in Texas in the United States (US) asked Apple to pay $502.8 million for patent infringement to VirnetX in an ongoing legal battle that has spanned 10 years.

Apple has been accused of infringing virtual private network technology patented by software security firm VirnetX. The legal battle between Apple and Nevada based VirnetX involved data transmission security in devices such as iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch according to Court documents.

The jury in the case was asked to determine how much Apple owes VirnetX in royalties for VPN on Demand, an iPhone feature that lets people access virtual private networks.

Apple had challenged the validity of the VirnetX patent.

VirnetX claimed $700 million from Apple, while Apple argued that it should pay $113 million, based on a royalty rate of 19 cents per unit. The jury however decided on 84 cent per unit total.

There are two separate lawsuits in the VirnetX vs. Apple legal battle, pertaining to older and newer Apple devices. Earlier this year, Apple was ordered to pay VirnetX $454 million, so this second award will be in addition to that first payment.

VirnetX was originally awarded $502 million, but the ruling was partially overturned in 2019 and sent back to the lower courts to determine new damages.