Patent Troll May Have Apple Over A Barrel, To The Tune Of $340 Million A Year

Patent assertion firm VirnetX may be on the cusp of winning a major lawsuit – worth as much as $340 million annually – against Apple, Inc. for alleged copyright violations related to FaceTime and VPN On Demand functions on the iPhone and iPad. An East Texas jury already found in favor of VirnetX, ordering Apple to pay the firm $368 million. In March U.S. District Judge Leonard Davis ordered an ongoing royalty be paid to VirnetX, 0.98 percent of revenue from the sale of iPhones and iPads, a staggering number. Apple has launched a creative legal rebuttal, but a U.S. Patent Office Trial and Appeal Board ruling this week indicates the company’s lawyers may have gone too far.