Word on the street is that the cost of Apple's legal war against Android is currently sitting at $100 million.
The war was started by Steve Jobs, who a few months before his death, was determined to obliterate Google's Android which he felt stole his ideas.
It is part of Apple's marketing that everyone steals Steve's brilliant ideas, it has been saying that about Microsoft for years, but he never took Gates to court.
Jobs, who knew he was dying, pledged to fight Apple's Android in the courts with every cent of profit he made.
It was a bold move, and seems to have been carried out by Apple, even long after Jobs left the building.
But it is money that has been wasted. So far Apple has made 84 claims against different Android manufacturers out of which only 10 were proved to have been infringed and only one ruling has gone in Apple's favour.
Apple started out with 10 patents which it could have used to quietly extort money from people in licences and has only had a victory on just one.
The infringements were a small feature of the software such as tapping phone number in an email or webpage to call or send a text. This is being fixed by the other party removing the feature or implement it in a different way.
Even an outfit with Apple's bottom line wasting $100 million to fulfil Jobs' desire to kill off Android is weird. It is not as if he is ever going to know that his will has not been obeyed and can haunt the company for not doing what it is told.
To make matters worse, the court cases have not stopped the march of Android.
Whilst "consuming 1/4% of annual profits"
- But Mr Jobs, that a StarTrek NG reading-tablet.
- I said; have....Android....destroyed!
For a Buddhist to desire bad will into another is a bad thing.
Wasn't he a hypocrite for making people desire his tat? YES.
http://androidcommunity.com/apple-blew-100-million-on-its-htc-lawsuit-and-all-it-got-was-this-lousy-post-20120123/
http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/286690/20120124/apple-burn-100-million-htc-patent-battle.htm
http://www.overclock.net/t/1204509/macrumors-apples-legal-fees-rumored-to-top-100m-on-htc-patent-dispute-alone/20
Apple is suing Samsung and Motorola in Germany, US, Australia, Netherlands and the UK. That has to be more than $100M now. They have $100B in the bank. What's a billion or two? They have more money than the US government some say.
They have failed in some of the suits but they have come back again armed with a newly acquire "auto-correct" lawsuit.
http://www.mobileburn.com/18517/news/apple-lobs-autocorrect-patent-lawsuit-at-samsung
Rise up people against this evil empire.
So Steve wasn't that great minded after all.