Apple and Nokia settle bitter smartphone patent dispute

Firms agree to end all litigation as Nokia receives a welcome boost

Apple and Nokia have settled their long-running patent dispute after Apple agreed to pay a lump sum and ongoing royalties to the Finnish manufacturer.

The terms of the deal will remain confidential, but Nokia confirmed that all patent litigation between the firms will cease.

"We are very pleased to have Apple join the growing number of Nokia licensees," said Stephen Elop, president and chief executive of Nokia, in a statement.

"This settlement demonstrates Nokia's industry-leading patent portfolio and enables us to focus on further licensing opportunities in the mobile communications market."

Nokia sued Apple in October 2009, claiming that 10 patents relating to features such as the screen and encryption were being used in the iPhone without permission.

Nokia followed up with another lawsuit in May 2010, alleging that the iPhone and iPad 3G were infringing another five Nokia patents relating to enhanced speech and data transmission.

Apple fired back with a countersuit, and the US International Trade Commission found in March 2011 that Apple had not violated these five Nokia patents. However, it appears that Nokia has emerged victorious in relation to the original filing.

Software patents specialist Florian Mueller predicted that Apple will have to fork out royalties to Nokia, but said that the outcome is good for both companies.

"This frees up resources for Apple and Nokia. Apple is embroiled in litigation with the three leading Android device makers (Motorola, HTC and Samsung)," he said on the Foss Patents blog.

"Nokia doesn't have any litigation worries at the moment, but part of its new strategy is to ratchet up the monetisation of its patent portfolio.

"Having proven its ability to defeat Apple after the most bitterly contested patent dispute that this industry has seen, [Nokia has] clear proof of concept."

The agreement will be a welcome boost for Nokia, which has been struggling in the past few weeks.

Most recently, analysts predicted that Samsung and Apple will overtake Nokia in the mobile market in the second quarter of 2011.

Elop has also had to repeatedly quash rumours of an impending Microsoft takeover.