FILE-The Apple logo is seen at the Apple Store on 5th Avenue in New York. (Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa (Photo by Sven Hoppe/picture alliance via Getty Images)
A federal jury ruled that Apple owes a company over $5.7 billion for infringing two of its patents.
Apple reportedly used the technology to power the haptic feedback in iPhones and Apple Watches.
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On Sept. 25, the jury stated that Apple's Taptic Engine, which creates tapping vibrations, infringed two patents of Taction, a San-Diego-based company, which utilizes technology in headphones and gaming headsets.
Reuters noted that Apple plans to appeal the verdict and denied the accusations and stated that the patents were invalid.
What was the Apple patent case about?
The backstory:
In 2021, Taction Technology Inc., a San-Diego-based company which utilizes technology in headphones and gaming headsets, filed a lawsuit against Apple in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of California.
According to Taction’s complaint for patent infringement, the organization accused Apple of improperly "capitalizing on its innovation and success" by selling devices that violated its vibration technology.
A San Diego federal judge ruled in 2023 that Apple did not infringe the patents. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit revived the case in 2025.
What they're saying:
In a statement from Apple obtained by Reuters, the technology company said their "Taptic Engine is fundamentally different from Taction's technology, which Taction's own testing of Apple's products confirmed during trial and it does not use Taction's technology."
The Source: Information for this story was provided by a complaint in the infringement case between Apple and Taction and Reuters, which obtained a statement from Apple in response to the case. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.